Love Out Loud
by Helena Mira
Summary: A situation with a family in need calls Nanny and the Professor, and the whole family into action. With help from Uncle Alfred a fundraising entertainment event works out marvelously. Meanwhile, Nanny and the Professor begin to love out loud for themselv
1. Chapter 1: The Situation

_This story is created using elements from the episodes "Kid Stuff" (the talent show episode) and "The Human Fly." It brings back the wonderful Uncle Alfred (played Juliet Mills' delightful father Sir John Mills). I have also "resurrected" Mrs. Kaufman and the characters from the nursing home. The main story line is based on my own experiences working as a volunteer for the organization Group, which provides weeklong mission trip experiences for Christian youth of all denominations. The story is another chapter in the "Love Makes A Family" series. The storyline will be finished in the next story "Renovation."_

_I do not own these characters and make no profit from them._

**Love Out Loud**

"Let's not merely say that we love each other. Let us show the truth by our actions." 1 John 3:18.

**Chapter 1: The Situation**

The summer was fast nearing an end, and the activities of the Everett children began to wind down. Much as they loved their different programs, they were looking forward to a two-week break before school started up again. However, it seemed that God had other plans.

One day, shortly after Aunts Agatha and Justine flew off to other adventures in their hot air balloon, Prudence was very subdued when Nanny picked her up from Vacation Bible School.

"What's the matter, sweetheart? Did you have a bad day?"

"Not really, Nanny, but I heard something very sad," said the sensitive little girl, her eyes filling with tears.

"Well maybe if you tell me about it, it will make you feel better," replied Nanny, now grateful that she had baked chocolate cupcakes on a whim that morning. They were Prudence's favorites and almost guaranteed to bring a smile.

Prudence thought for a minute. "I can tell you about it, but I don't even think that YOU could make me feel better."

"Well, darling, then it really sounds as if you do need to tell me about it," she said, as they pulled into the driveway. Prudence helped make the sandwiches and milk and they sat down at the dining room table.

"Now start at the beginning," encouraged Nanny in her most comforting voice.

"Do you know the Fleming family at church?" asked Prudence.

"Of course, they are hard to miss aren't they?" responded Nanny.

The Flemings had six children, the oldest of which was Butch's age, the youngest, a pair of three-year-old twins. Their father had fought in Vietnam and returned home about six months ago, injured. He was still unable to work. Last Christmas, Pastor Paul had organized a small toy and clothing drive so that the family might have a merry Christmas. The family was always short on money.

"Well, Molly told us this morning that they are going to have to move out of their house because the building inspector says that it's not safe for them to live there anymore. They have no place to go. She's scared because if they don't have a house, then the children might have to go live with relatives, DIFFERENT relatives, and then they won't see each other for a long time," said Prudence sadly.

Nanny felt very sad herself, remembering the time when she was afraid that she might be separated from her own sister, following the loss of their parents. She couldn't imagine what Joni, the children's mother, was going through. Since her husband had returned from the war it had been a struggle for her to deal with both the children and her husband who was ill. Of course she couldn't afford outside help.

She didn't have an answer for Prudence, but said that she would call Pastor Paul. Much as everyone loved Prudence and her caring heart, she was not always the most reliable source of information. Before she got involved herself, she wanted to make sure of the facts.

"Why hello, Nanny!" he responded to her greeting. " What can I do for you today?"

"I wanted to check on a story that Prudence brought home from Bible School this morning," she began.

Pastor Paul sighed on the other end. "You're the third person who's called. Yes, it's true. The Flemings are being threatened with eviction from their home because of its condition. You see, before Eliot went off to serve, he used to keep up with the repairs himself. He's pretty handy you know, can do just about anything himself. But since he came back from his tour he just hasn't been the same. Physically, he's weakened, but no real permanent injuries. Mentally, well that's another story."

"Is it true that the family will be broken up?" asked Nanny.

"Sadly, yes," answered the pastor. "If they lose the house, they have nowhere else to go. It's not easy to find a place large enough for eight, and money is real tight. Joni can't work because of all the young kids and neither can Eliot. The veteran's benefits just aren't enough to cover expenses, as you can imagine."

"Are we going to try to do something?" she asked, meaning the church.

"You'll hear about it on Sunday. We're going to have a meeting after the service for anyone who has any ideas and or wants to help. Word is getting out fairly rapidly, but we're going to have to get to work pretty quickly. The eviction notice gave them fifteen days."

Nanny thoughtfully hung up the phone. "That doesn't leave us much time."

"What doesn't leave us much time?" asked Prudence.

But Nanny was still deep in thought. "Prudence, get ready. We promised Mrs. Kaufman a visit today."

"Goody," said Prudence. "I can't wait to see Mrs. Darmstadt and Aunt Lottie again."

Nanny smiled. The child was so easily distracted. But she had become very attached to her new friends at the Montclaire Nursing Home. Mrs. Darmstadt had always been a favorite, but recently "Aunt Lottie" had been running a close second. Both women had been born and raised in Brooklyn, NY before they moved out to California in the fifties. Since both had lost their husbands and had limited mobility they had come to live at Montclaire where the Everett's friend and former neighbor Mrs. Kaufman had gone after a minor stroke had robbed her of some of the use of her right side.

When Nanny and the Everetts had helped her to move in, they had begun to befriend some of the other residents. Prudence in particular had made friends with some of the older women who had no one else to visit them. Trelawney had developed her own friendly relationship with an older gentleman that she referred to as Mr. "Just Jim." When they met, he had told her that he was never called Mr. Anybody anymore, he was just Jim. Taught to address her elders as Mr. or Mrs. She started calling him Mr. Just Jim. The old fellow got a kick out of it and now refused to tell her his last name. Now all the Everett children called him Mr. Just Jim, to his amusement and delight.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

When they entered the rec room, Prudence caught sight of Aunt Lottie and made a beeline for her. Looking around Nanny caught sight of Mrs. Kaufman sitting with Mrs. Darmstadt and Mr. Just Jim.

When she went over his first words were, "No visit from my little Cornish lass today?"

Nanny smiled, "You'll just have to make do with this one."

"I know," he said. "But can you play the piano like an angel?"

"I can't play the piano at all. The angels gave up on me a long time ago," she said with a chuckle.

"That's alright, dear," replied Mrs. Darmstadt who often took things quite literally. "You have the face of an angel. Still no ring though, I see."

Nanny self-consciously covered her left hand.

"Now, dear," she went on. "We all know that you and the Professor have an understanding, but he has been very remiss about getting that engagement ring on your finger. I'm going to have a little chat with him the next time he comes in."

"Oh, Rosemary," said Mrs. Kaufman. "Don't be such a busybody. I'm sure they get enough of that at home from Mrs. Fowler. The Professor is a very busy man and these kinds of things tend to slip his mind."

"Humph!" replied Mrs. Darmstadt. "He better watch out. A pretty girl like this without a ring becomes fair game. If he's not careful, some other man will come and sweep her off her feet."

"Like me?" suggested Mr. Just Jim with a smile.

"Old man, you're long past sweeping any woman off her feet, let alone a sweet girl like this. I was thinking of some young buck, somewhat closer to her age if you catch my drift."

Mrs. Kaufman, seeing that Nanny was becoming embarrassed by this open discussion of her love life, came to her rescue.

"Well, I've known Nanny and the Professor much longer than either of you and I can tell you that neither one of them ever looks at anyone else. I've never known two young people more devoted to each other. Now this conversation has gotten ridiculous, let's give Nanny a chance to tell us some of the news from home."

But Prudence was walking over with Aunt Lottie.

"Folks, it sounds like we have a situation," announced Aunt Lottie.

"A situation?" asked Mrs. Darmstadt eagerly. Very little ever happened in the home, so a situation could be a very interesting diversion indeed.

"My little Prudence here has been telling me of a family with six children in her church that may lose their home and the children farmed out to different relatives," she explained.

"The Flemings?" asked Mrs. Kaufman, turning to Nanny.

"I'm afraid so," she said. "Things have been really hard for them since Eliot came back from the Vietnam. The city building inspector is threatening to condemn the house in fifteen days. There's no money to bring it up to code or to keep the family together."

"Oh, poor Joni!" said Mrs. Kaufman. "She must be beside herself."

"I'm sure she is," answered Nanny. "I haven't spoken to her myself, but Prudence brought the story home from Bible School. Little Molly is in her class. I verified it with Pastor Paul."

Mr. Just Jim had become agitated.

"You're right, Lottie," he said. "This certainly is a situation if there ever was one. One of our boys goes off to fight for his country and this is how we repay him. We take away his house and break up his family. What are we going to do about it?"

Everyone smiled. Mr. Just Jim had fought in the Great War, also known as World War I. He liked to tell his war stories to anyone who would listen. His favorite one was that of how he met his late wife, Juliet, while he was recovering in hospital outside London. A woman from Cornwall, England, which just happened to be where the Figalillys were also from, he had quickly befriended young Trelawney who, though happy to be living in the States with her sister, still became occasionally homesick. As Juliet had also been a very fine pianist, it made for a double bond between the two.

"I don't see what we can do, stuck in here like this," replied Mrs. Darmstadt. "Now if we were back in the old neighborhood, something like this would never happen!"

"Why not?" asked Prudence.

"Poor little girl, you have no idea of what it was like to live in the old neighborhood, like I did in East New York. Everyone knew everyone and even if none of us had a lot of money, we all helped each other out," she explained. "All our houses were close up against each other. You took care of your own place and if someone was old or sick or couldn't do it for themselves, then everyone else pitched in. Here all the houses are so far apart that you hardly see your neighbors or even know who they are."

"Well, in my neighborhood up there in Bay Ridge it was pretty much the same," said Aunt Lottie. "Why we would all sit on our front stoops on summer nights and talk to each other the houses were so close. Or we could walk down to the little deli for penny candy. Everybody knew everybody, which was good, most of the time."

"Neighborhoods sure were different back then," sighed Mrs. Darmstadt. "We all lived together and went to church together. In my neighborhood, we all went to St. Michael's, the German church. When I went to school there we had all our classes in German. It was the only we that we could talk to our folks."

"I didn't know you were from Germany," said Nanny, surprised because the woman didn't have a trace of a German accent.

"Of course not," said Mrs. Darmstadt. "I was born in New York and so was my mother, across the street from St. Patrick's Cathedral in fact."

"In the middle of Manhattan?"

"Manhattan was not at all the same as it is today. Our family had a farm. You know my grandparents came from Germany, Bremerhaven in the north. We only moved out to East New York when I was a little girl, so we could live in the country again. Since it was the German area that was where we went. That way we could be with our own people. My parents never did learn to speak English," she said.

"Wow!" said Prudence. "How could they live their whole lives in America and never speak English?"

"Well," said Mrs. Darmstadt, "It goes back to what I was telling you about the old neighborhood. Everyone spoke German. They read German newspapers. And all of the stores and shops were run by Germans. And of course the church and school were German. There were public schools of course, but no good Catholic parent would ever send his child to one of those heathen places."

To get her off what was a potentially tricky subject, Mrs. Kaufman said, "I can see how an ethnic community like that would be so tight-knit. Especially if most of the folks couldn't speak the language."

Aunt Lottie would never be left out of a conversation. "Well, in the Irish neighborhoods, we spoke English just fine, but we kept to ourselves. My grandparents came over from Donegal during Black '47. Starved out by the Brits they were."

"What's Black '47?" asked Prudence.

"That was the first potato famine in Ireland," explained Aunt Lottie. "There were others after that, but that was the worst. Those English landowners shipped out all the grain grown in the green fields, but since the Irish relied on the potatoes, they had no food. Some of them even tried to eat grass.

"Not too much better once they came to America. I still remember the signs "Irish Need Not Apply" when folks were looking for jobs. We stuck together good back in those days."

"Well," said Mrs. Kaufman, hoping that Nanny wasn't insulted by the negative remarks about her own people. "I guess you could say that back then, some folks were bound together by language and others by necessity. Today, out here in California, at least we don't have those problems. Things are different out here. But we still know our neighbors through our churches."

"Yes, we do," agreed Nanny. "I called Pastor Paul as soon as Prudence told me and he said that there would be a meeting after Sunday service this week."

"I wish I could go to that meeting," said Mr. Just Jim. "I'd make sure that that house was fixed up right and proper. I might not be a part of that church, but that fellow Eliot is a veteran like me. He might not be my neighbor, but I that a feel that that bond is there. Things are different out here, but it seems like people still want to stick with their own kind."

"Pastor Paul says that everyone is our neighbor, so that means that Mr. Fleming really is your neighbor," said Prudence.

"That Pastor Paul sounds a like a smart man, for a minister," answered Mr. Just Jim.

"How would you do that, Jim?" asked Mrs. Darmstadt, coming around to the original topic. "Fix up the house that is, not get to the meeting."

"Well, before I got stuck in this place, I was a contractor. I fixed up houses for people. Roofs, porches, painting, siding, plumbing, you name it. I did it all. And if I couldn't do it myself, I hired men to help. After World War II, I made a point of hiring our boys who came back from the fronts, didn't matter where they were from or what church they went to. Taught them what they needed to know myself. Helped them get jobs later. Oh, I know folks made a big deal over that GI bill, but every man's not made out for college. Some of them just need a trade, a skill that will bring home an honest dollar for an honest day's work."

Listening to him speak, Nanny could feel her mind turning towards an idea. Was it mere coincidence that she and Prudence had come to visit on a day when this was foremost in their minds? She began to think out loud.

"Mr. Just Jim, if you would like to attend the meeting, then I would be happy to pick you up and bring you to church on Sunday," she offered.

"Oh I would love to go too," said Mrs. Kaufman. "It would be wonderful to see all of my old friends in the parish. And it's always a treat to ride in Arabella."

"Arabella?" asked Mr. Just Jim.

"That's Nanny's 1930 Model T that Hal restored for her to drive. It had been in . . . now whose garage was it for all those years? It's quite a sight," she answered.

"Mrs. Patterson's. I traded Grandmother Figalilly's recipe for shepherd's pie for it. I'd say it was a pretty fair swap, considering what a sight she was before Hal saved her life," replied Nanny.

"Well, I haven't had a ride in such a car in over thirty years," said Mr. Just Jim. "I'd be happy to go along, although I suppose that it means that I will have to attend the service."

"He's a heathen," explained Aunt Lottie to Nanny. "I believe that it was the only thing his Juliet couldn't nag him into doing; going to church that is."

"My Juliet never nagged," said Mr. Just Jim defensively.

"The way you tell it, she did," corrected Mrs. Darmstadt wryly. "Seems like you were at her beck and call, night and day."

Prudence started to giggle. "You guys sound like Hal and Trelawney."

"In what way, dear?" asked Aunt Lottie.

"They're always fighting like that," she said.

"Now Prudence you mustn't tell tales," said Nanny. "Hal and Trelawney don't fight, they bicker."

"Maybe in front of you they bicker, but when it's just us kids they fight," she answered.

"Well bickering or fighting," said Mrs. Kaufman, "I think that the point has been made that you're acting like children. Nanny, will you really come and pick Jim and me up on Sunday?"

"Of course," she said quickly.

"Well, can I come too?" asked Aunt Lottie. "After all, I was the one who brought all of your attentions to the situation. I would like to have a chance to do my part."

"I would too," said Mrs. Darmstadt. "And it's been forever since I have gone to mass in a real church."

"Well of course, you're all welcome," said Nanny. "But St. Andrew's isn't a Catholic Church; it's Episcopal. We don't have mass, you know."

Mrs. Darmstadt thought for a minute, clearly torn between the desire to get out of the home for a few hours and the disagreeable idea of attending a Protestant service.

"Well, I suppose it could be worse," she said, not entirely cognizant of her tactless remark. "After all we do say that those Episcopalians are the Junior Varsity Catholics."

Nanny suppressed a laugh, while Prudence looked confused. Who knew what she would tell her friends in bible school tomorrow?

"But Nanny," asked Mr. Just Jim. "Why wouldn't a sweet English girl like you be going to an Anglican church?"

"Not too many of them here in America," explained Nanny. "However the Episcopal church is part of the Anglican communion. And of course that's where the Professor and the kids have always gone."

"Well if old Henry the Eighth hadn't been so hot to get into Anne Boleyn's skirts, then there wouldn't have been any need for separate churches. You would still be in the real church," said Aunt Lottie.

"Now Lottie," said Mrs. Darmstadt. "We need to be understanding about that. She obviously doesn't know any better. People go where they were brought, in the first place and she is from England you know.

"And I'm sure that it wasn't her ancestors who starved out your folks from Ireland," she added. At the word ancestors, Nanny looked away. Mrs. Kaufman thought that she was suppressing another smile. She caught what she thought was a twinkle in her eye.

"I don't understand," said Prudence. "I thought that we were going to help the Flemings. Why are we talking about this guy Henry and some lady named Anne's skirts?"

The adults looked at each other guiltily.

"The child's right you know," said Mr. Just Jim. "I guess we all sound a little foolish yammering about churches and such when there's a veteran and his family to help."

"God loves everyone," said Prudence stoutly. "Jesus helped everyone and He never even asked what religion they were. What's a heathen?"

"Someone who doesn't have a religion," said Mrs. Darmstadt.

"Oh," said Prudence thoughtfully. "Mr. Just Jim, since you don't have a religion, if you want, you can share mine."

For a moment there was silence. Nanny was struck by the simplicity of Prudence's expression of her faith. She could not articulate a single theological precept, yet she understood Christ's message on a deeper level than most adults. Finally, Mrs. Kaufman spoke,

"Nanny, if there's room, then we'll all join you for church on Sunday. When do you want us to be ready by?"

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Dinner conversation that night in the Everett home was all about the "situation," as it had become known.

"Wow!" said Hal enthusiastically. "We could all help fix up the house. There's only one more week left of the science program."

"I don't know if I want to spend my last free time before school starts working," said Butch.

"I bet we would get to hammer nails, and paint, and go up on the roof," said Hal.

"Hammer nails? Go up on the roof? Cool. Count me in!" answered Butch.

"Before we get all excited about this," said the Professor. "There are a lot of things to be considered. Actually fixing up a house to meet building codes is a lot different than, say, building a raft to sail out on Squaw Lake."

"Would you use telephone poles to fix the house?" asked Prudence.

"Telephone poles, for a raft?" asked Trelawney. "Sounds like I missed a good one."

"Well, anyway," said Nanny, whose idea the telephone pole had been. "I think that you all have noble intentions, but the Professor is right, there are a lot of carpentry and other skills that you would need to fix up a house."

"Mr. Just Jim would help," said Trelawney.

"How do you know that?" asked Nanny.

"Oh he told me all about how he used to build and fix up houses before he retired," she answered. "He had a business and he fixed roofs, painted houses, built additions and porches, and even handled plumbing. I bet if he went over and had a look see, then he would know exactly what to do."

"He could also teach everyone how to do it," added Prudence.

"How do you know?" asked Butch.

"Because we were talking about it today," said the little girl. "On Sunday Nanny is going to go to the home and bring Mrs. Kaufman, Mr. Just Jim, Mrs. Darmstadt, and Aunt Lottie to church for the meeting."

"Sounds like the whole gang is coming," commented the Professor.

"Oh yes," said Prudence. "Mr. Just Jim is very upset because Mr. Fleming is a veteran from the war and the government's not helping him."

"And I would advise that we stay off that topic," said Nanny.

"Old guy got himself all worked up into a tailspin over it?" asked the Professor.

"In a manner of speaking," replied Nanny.

"Does that mean that he was mad?" said Prudence. "Because he was mad."

"I can imagine," said Trelawney. "He cares a lot about the boys who fight in the wars. He may get a bit dotty about it sometimes, but I think he's right."

"So do I," said the Professor.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Later that night, it was past one am when the Professor was muttering angrily, "This is the real situation that I would like to fix."

Working late because he had fallen behind when the aunts had come to visit, he had looked up from the pile of papers that he was trying to grade to find Phoebe standing before him, pale as a sheet and looking as though she had seen a ghost. It had happened again. The nightmare that had haunted her, since the aunts had managed to dredge up a terrifying secret that Trelawney had been keeping to herself for the last couple of years. Now that Phoebe knew, she couldn't forget it.

The first couple of times he had heard her cry out from his room and had come to get her to bring her downstairs for a cup of tea and some peace of mind. But tonight her vivid dream had sent her downstairs looking for him. Instead of tea, he went to the liquor cabinet and poured a large tumbler of Red Label. Returning to her sitting on the small couch in the study, trembling violently, he put his arm around her and said, "Drink this. I don't care if you don't like it. It will calm you down and help you sleep."

Obediently, she took the glass and a cautious sip. "I don't like scotch."

"Well, your other choices are bourbon, gin, vodka, or whiskey," he answered.

She made a face, "I don't like hard liquor."

He sighed. "Phoebe, I'm sorry but I don't know what else to do. This can't go on. You must sleep. I have to sleep. I can't bear to see you in all this pain."

She took a large swallow and then another, returned the empty glass to his hand, said coldly, "I'm sorry I bothered you. Goodnight, Professor."

That stung. He looked at her in surprise. She had never, ever spoken to him in that tone before. Before she could stand up to leave, he drew her closer into his arms. He sensed her uncertainty. Looking deeply into her eyes, he softly said, "Don't let him do this."

"Do what?" she asked. There was still an edge in her voice.

"Oh, my God," he said slowly enunciating each word. "Can't you see? He's here. He might as well be sitting between us. You are so afraid of him, that you are forgetting how much I love you."

Her face crumpled in sorrow. Not knowing what else to do, he gently stroked her loose fair hair back from her face. "Come to me," he said. "Come to me and let me comfort you. Let me love you."

Like so many times before, her eyes filled with tears. Knowing that his arms were always waiting for her, she buried herself in his embrace. "I'm sorry. It's not your fault. Please don't be angry with me."

"I am never angry with you," he said. "I am angry with the way that things have turned out. You know that I love you more than anyone else in this world. Anyone. When you hurt, I hurt. I hurt when I cannot release you from your pain."

She looked at him with understanding. "I know you feel my pain. I feel your pain and I also feel you anger." she was thoughtful. "Hal, please don't leave me alone tonight. I only feel safe at night when you are near."

He knew that this was a bad idea. But he thought that if he could calm her enough, he would eventually get her to her own bed, alone. He allowed her to curl up beside him and shortly she was sound asleep. The scotch had a numbing effect that helped her settle down, while retaining the ability to stumble up to bed when he aroused her. After he tucked her in, he turned to leave, and met Trelawney standing in the hallway. She looked at him oddly.

"I am not thinking that this is anything other than what it is," she said. "I will tell no one else. But you must know. She does not believe that the unicorn is dead. She is afraid that he will come back for me."

"Are you are afraid that he will come?" he asked.

"No," she shook her head. "You killed the unicorn. He will never come back."

"How do you know? How do you know and Phoebe doesn't?" he asked curiously.

"I know things that Phoebe doesn't," she replied. "I know Phoebe better than she knows me. I know you. You love her. You have always loved her. You will always love her. You gave her your heart before you ever knew her, and she gave you hers."

"What are you talking about?" he was starting to get frustrated again. Was this poor child crazy?

"I am not a poor child," said Trelawney seriously. "And I am not crazy. But I know things that you don't. I know that right now that Phoebe is dreaming of you. She dreams about you every night. But now the unicorn comes into her dreams. He is very real to her, but he is not real."

Hal was exhausted and couldn't help thinking that maybe this was his own dream. But when he looked at Trelawney she was shaking her head.

"Professor, you are the only one who can help Phoebe. You know what to do. Please do it. I love my sister, but she will not be happy until you are one. But you cannot be one until you help her," she added wisely.

"I truly believe that you believe everything that you have just told me. Although I must admit that I don't understand half of what you have told me," he answered.

She thought for a minute, and then quietly said, "You do not have to understand to do what is right. I can tell you no more, it is not allowed. Goodnight, Professor."

Before she entered her room she turned and said, "I am not crazy and neither are you. We both love Phoebe. Sleep well."

Deciding that trying to figure out what the hell the girl was talking about was futile, he returned to the liquor cabinet and poured himself one scotch, and then another for good measure. Everyone else might be worrying about the situation over at the Fleming house, but he had a situation of his own to deal with in his home.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Sunday came and the scene at St. Andrew's after morning service was chaotic. Pastor Jason from the Trinity Church, Presbyterian Church, came over with a group of teenagers who had heard about the meeting from Hal at the science program. Fr. Bob from the Catholic Church came over with a group from his church whose kids had heard about it from Trelawney at the community center. There were even people there who did not go to any church but just wanted to help. Pastor Paul looked around and said,

"This is crazy, we'll never get all these folks quiet, let alone have a meeting."

However Pastor Jason just grinned. In his late twenties, he had a head of bright red hair and a smile as big as all outdoors. He turned to his kids and said, "C'mon gang!"

Clapping his hands he called out, "God is good!"

The kids answered, "All the time!"

He then repeated, "All the time!"

The kids answered, "God is good!"

Seeing that people were starting to pay attention he called even louder, "God is good!"

Now even more people chanted, "All the time!"

"All the time!"

"God is good!"

By now everyone was quiet and looking up front. Turning to Pastor Paul, he said, "Your congregation, Pastor."

"Thank you, Pastor," replied Pastor Paul. "I'll have to remember that one."

"So do I," said the Professor in a low voice to Nanny.

Pastor Paul began to speak, "It's really great that all of you have come out to try to help with the situation at the Flemings. A friend of the church . . . uh . . . Jim, over here, has been out to the house to look things over and he's checked the inspection report. Now since he's a retired contractor, he's going to give us the professional advice we need."

Mr. Just Jim stood up. He was clearly uncomfortable standing up in front of such a large crowd, but Trelawney was sitting up front with the three ladies for support.

"Well, folks, I'm no kind of a public speaker, in fact I'm not even a churchgoing man myself, but we got us a situation here, so I'm gonna do the best I can to help. Now I've been over to the house and it's in bad shape. It really does need to be fixed up or just won't be safe for all those children. So I know that some of you folks are mad at the city, but really they're doing the family a favor.

"Now the most important thing is the foundation and she's solid, so the house can be saved. The roof, well she's pretty bad, but with new beams in the attic and tarpaper and shingles, well that can be saved too. The porch, she's really bad, so we're going to have to do some demolition there, but once it's out of the way, it'll take no time to build a new one. The windows are a full of wood rot, but they can be fixed up. We get some wood and caulk. Most of the house is wood, it's a wood frame, that'll be okay. It'll be a big scraping job, a power washer would help. But if we prime it up good, it'll be good for a long time," he explained.

Pastor Paul was writing furiously, "What about the inside?"

"You don't need to write all that up, sir," answered Mr. Just Jim. "I wrote you up a spec sheet, just like it was a real job. I'll help you when you go to the city too. But the inside is the good news. Walls and ceilings are all sound, nothing a coat of paint won't fix up. Some stairs need replacing, but that's a small job."

"So where do we start?" asked Pastor Jason, clearly eager to get to work.

"Well, you aren't gonna like this, but the first thing you gotta do is go to the building inspector at city hall and get at least a two week extension on that eviction notice. Aside from the fact that all that work is gonna take time, you're gonna need money for your materials. You know, paint, wood, shingles, hardware. If you bring your own tools, that'll help. You certainly have lots of labor," he said looking around.

There was silence. Nobody had thought that money would be needed, but it all made sense. Nobody was going to fix anything without building materials.

Then one man stood up. "My brother owns a paint store. Maybe we can get the paint from him at cost."

"That's a good idea all around," said Mr. Just Jim. "If you can get all your supplies at cost and some of them donated, then the total cost'll go down."

"What about going to the city for the extension?" asked Fr. Bob.

"Nanny and I can take care of that," said Mrs. Kaufman. "We've dealt with city hall and the red tape before."

Nanny nodded. "If we have a work plan organized, do you think they'd grant an extension?"

"Won't know until you try," said Mr. Just Jim. "But it seems to me that if everybody knew about how one of our boys who went out there to Vietnam came home and was going to lose everything the mayor would have to sit up and take notice."

"I should think he would," said Mrs. Kaufman. "If that fellow from the TV station would come out to Oak St. over a tree being cut down, he should certainly know that this is an even bigger story. What was his name?"

"Harvey Sloan," supplied Nanny.

"That's right, Harvey Sloan," she said. "That man sure does know how to tell a story."

"Just warn me when he's going to be around," muttered the Professor.

"Maybe it would help get some donations," suggested Pastor Paul.

Trelawney had been anxious to throw out her idea. She raised her hand and when Pastor Paul nodded, she stood up and said, "Whenever we wanted to raise money at home, we staged an entertainment. I know there are a lot of talented people sitting out there who could perform."

"We wouldn't have time to organize that," called out one man.

Trelawney thought for a minute and then said, "Not if it was a variety show. Then people would organize their own acts and come in and perform. It would be good publicity."

A woman in the back of the room raised her hand. Fr. Bob smiled and said, "Lois?"

"I'm the president of the Columbiettes, at St. Peters, and we were just holding a little meeting back here. We can't do any repairs, but we could organize the entertainment, and even supply refreshments."

"Sounds great!" said Pastor Jason. "When can you get started?"

"Right away!" she said. "If you want to perform, you can sign up on the way out. I think it's a perfect thing for the children to do."

"She's no dummy," commented the Professor. "She knows that every kid she puts on stage is guaranteed to sell more tickets."

The teens from Trinity had been having their own meeting. Now a tall, lanky kid with long brown hair and sideburns stood up.

"I'm Christopher Tucker, but everyone calls me Topher," he said. "We were just talking and most of us are done with our summer programs in a week. That would give us two weeks to work on the house, if someone can show us how to do it. I've never fixed a roof or built a porch, but I bet I could learn. And so could the other guys, and the girls too."

"I can teach all of you young folks everything that you need to know," said Mr. Just Jim. "As long as you're smart to learn."

Topher smiled. "I'm taking engineering in the fall. I think I can handle it."

"No offense to your book learning, son," replied Mr. Just Jim, "But can you work with your hands?"

His question hung in the air for a minute. One of the girls said, "Do you really think that we can do it?"

"Young lady," replied Mr. Just Jim. "If you had told me a week ago that I would standing in front of all these people, in a church of all places and talking to them like I've done it my whole life, I would have told you that you were crazy. But look at me. I'm here because a brother veteran needs me. It's not about me it's about him."

Pastor Jason used the opportunity to make a point. "Remember what Jesus said, 'Whatsoever you do for the least of my brothers, that you do unto me.' The Lord is among us now, calling on us to be his angels of mercy. If you have faith in Him, then He has faith in you."

Fr. Bob added, "Remember what St. Theresa of Avila said, 'Christ has no body now on earth, but ours. Our hands are to be His hands.' If you believe that you will be His hands, then you will. Remember that Jesus was a carpenter."

Moved by what his fellow Pastors had said, Pastor Paul said, "Jesus never said no to anyone who asked for his help. There can be no worthier cause to bring to Him, than the desire to help another."

Topher stood up and said, "We can do this! With a little bit of faith and a lot of love!"

As everyone started to applaud, the Professor turned to Nanny and said, "I think he stole your line."

"That's fine with me," she replied. "Now I have to find our friends and prepare for my battle with city hall."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Later that night, Nanny and the Professor had escaped for some time of their own in the backyard. Hal was hoping that if he found some time to be alone with her before she went to bed that perhaps it would help her to sleep easier. His late night talk with Trelawney had disturbed him more than he liked to admit. He had liked to hear that Phoebe dreamed about him, and he had no doubt that Trelawney knew this. However, the fact that she knew that her sister was still troubled by thoughts of Cholmondeley really bothered him. It had confirmed his own fears.

The next day he had tried to talk to the young girl about it. She looked at him with wisdom in her eyes that belied her eleven years. He was puzzled. Her whole affect changed when she began to talk like this. He thought that it must have something to do with her powerful psychic connections with the cosmos. He didn't understand those either and was beginning to realize that he probably never would.

"Professor," she explained. "There is very little that I can tell you other than what I said last night. I knew it would confuse you, but it was the only thing that I could think of doing to help. I can't tell you what to do. In life there are some things that we must figure out for ourselves."

"Trelawney, if this is another one of your elaborate schemes to bring . . . "

"Professor, I do not need to scheme any more to bring you together," she interrupted. "You are together. Nothing will keep you apart."

"Then why did you come out of your room last night?" he asked.

"I knew she was troubled. I knew it was not the first time she needed you. I can hear her call too, and last night she was quite frightened. I was surprised that she didn't wake the others. But I heard her go downstairs and I knew that you would care for her," she replied. "And that didn't take any great deductive reasoning. You are always there for her. Everyone knows that."

"Trelawney, I feel so helpless. I just want to take away her pain," he admitted.

"I know that you do," she said softly. "But this is not a pain that you can take away, no matter how many shots of scotch you give her. Don't get mad, yes, I can do it too. I always could."

Hal began to feel uncomfortable.

"Please, I do not intrude. But my sister and I are deeply connected. If it makes you feel better, I feel her pain too. And if I could help her I would," she said.

"So even you can't help her?" he asked.

She shook her head. "No, but you can. In fact I believe that you already have the answer."

He looked at her helplessly again.

"I don't know, myself," she repeated. "But you must have courage. Whatever the cure is, it will be bitter medicine to her."

Right now, he knew that it relaxed Phoebe to be close to him, surrounded by him. She was nestled under his right arm and her stroked her hair with his left hand. His arm held her firmly while his hand was gentle. Sitting by themselves under stars, they could almost forget about the new flurry of activity that was about to start. Hal rested his cheek on her silky hair and noticed that she seemed very weary. Of course she hadn't had a decent night's sleep in days. But he decided to avoid the issue of the nightmares.

"Phoebe, if this is too much for you then pull back a little," he said gently. "I know how you like to be in the middle of things, but you also need to think about yourself. And me."

She looked up and saw he was smiling. "I do think about you, all the time."

He leaned in and tenderly kissed her. He could feel her respond, searching his mouth more deeply and wrapping her arms around him tightly. Since they had received Aunt Justine's blessing and knew that the last obstacle to their marriage had fallen, her responses to his physical expressions had become more intense. Not that he didn't want to encourage it, but he knew that she would not hold out much longer. Deciding that he didn't want to encourage her too fast, too much, too soon, he pulled back and held her close against his shoulder.

"I want you so much," she breathed.

"I want you too," he said.

"Then why . . ."

"Am I being so careful?" he finished. "Phoebe, I am going to be honest. I am not sure that you have faced up to everything that you need to face up to. You have had so many shocks. This latest one was about your sister, you can't tell me that you never think of it."

She stared straight ahead.

"Hal," she said tensely, "I am doing my best NOT to think about it."

He knew that she was struggling, but he decided to push it.

"Phoebe, you know better than I do, that the mind will run away from those things that are too painful to acknowledge, for but only so long. The thoughts and emotions creep in and lurk in the shadows. I cannot see as deeply into your mind as you can into mine, but I know that the images of what might have happened haunt you. They wake you up in the night because they are so frightening. They haunt me too," he said quietly.

"Yes, they haunt me," she admitted. "Sometimes I wish we knew. Sometimes I wish that it could be reduced to a single real image, rather than a thousand false ones. My beautiful innocent sister, only eight years old, he built up her trust and then he betrayed her in the worst way possible. He made her feel guilty. He made her feel that she betrayed me."

"I feel the same way sometimes, wishing that I really knew what happened. And then there are other times that I wish he would come back, because I would kill him. I would pulverize him, as I did that little trinket," he said. "I hate him as I have never hated anyone before in my life."

He held her more tightly. She felt the deep need within him to protect her. And she knew deep within her own heart that she only felt safe because he was there. But they were both chained to that man now, she by her fear and he by his hatred. She knew, as he did, that until they broke those chains, they would never be free to love one another with the depth of which they were capable. She knew that what he had said the other night was true. That man was between them. She could feel his hand stroking her hair and his soft, "I love you"s whispered in her ear.

And then she felt the tears wet on her cheeks. Almost without any self-control, she was sobbing in his arms. Crying for their pain, for the lost innocence of her sister, and of her own. She could feel him rocking her as if she was a child. In arms like this, clinging to him for the safety his presence insured, she wondered if perhaps she was not a child. But he loved her as she was. Woman or child, she knew that his heart was entirely faithful to her. And it was within those moments that she realized that the love he had for her was more powerful than even that of his own children.

As always, he held her until there were no tears left. She felt herself calming in his arms. Whatever the tears had released, the space they left behind was filled with peace. Yet she also felt a yearning. She wanted him so desperately to take that final step, to stop treating her as if she might break. He must have sensed her thoughts, because he shifted them so that he could look in her eyes.

"I love you more than you can imagine," he said. "And I know that you have a vivid imagination. This time will pass. But you must realize that you will never be able to face up to your own issues, to see beyond them, until you stop trying to stop solve everyone else's problems. It is not selfish to focus on yourself when you need to."

Within the depths of his blue eyes, she saw his love, his strength, and his devotion. And within their light she saw that it was all for her, that he was waiting for her. Through her tears, she smiled.

"What?" he said softly.

"I've always liked blue eyes best too," she said tenderly. He kissed her gently and then led her back to the house. The next three weeks promised to be very busy.

That night, she finally slept without waking.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

**To Be Continued**

_In the next chapter, as plans begin to coalesce for fixing the situation, Nanny finds herself confronted not only by the Professor, but also her friends at the nursing home regarding her personal situation._

23


	2. Chapter 2: The Confrontation

**Chapter 2: Confrontation**

Now that there was some organization put in place for the improvement of the Fleming house, the first order of business on Monday morning was to go down to city hall and fight for an extension for the eviction notice. With Mr. Just Jim for technical support and Mrs. Kaufman for moral support, Nanny walked into the office of the building inspector.

"Not you again!" said the inspector the minute he saw her. "This time you are definitely in the wrong office. I no longer deal with the cutting down of trees."

Nanny and Mrs. Kaufman exchanged glances, the building inspector was their old friend from the department of public works who had ultimately been very helpful in saving the tree on Oak St.

"Why Mr. Abercrombie! What a pleasant surprise! In case you've forgotten, my name is Miss Figalilly and we are here to request an extension for the eviction notice of the Fleming home on Elm St," she said.

The man grimaced, "That's not a name that I was likely to forget. And I see that you've brought reinforcements. No apricot cookies though, I see."

"You'll have to earn them this time," said Mrs. Kaufman. "Now about that house on Elm St. What are you going to do?"

"Not someone else," the gentleman groaned. "I've been getting phone calls about that since we opened this morning."

"Good!" said Mr. Just Jim. "Then you are aware that it is an important issue. If you will just give us an extra two weeks, I believe that we can put things in order so that the house is safe for the family to live in."

"It's not as simple as that," explained the inspector. " We have been sending notices out regarding the condition of that house for the last six months. It wasn't until the eviction notice was finally served that we actually got a response from the residents."

Nanny and Mrs. Kaufman looked at each other with concern. No doubt with everything else on her mind, Joni had ignored the previous notices. But hopefully, now that they had a plan in place, they could get the extension anyway.

"Sir, we know that Mr. and Mrs. Fleming have been remiss about responding to your notices, but you do know that there is a lot going on there. Since Mr. Fleming returned from the war he has been ill and Mrs. Fleming is trying to manage six children, the oldest of whom is nine," explained Nanny.

"Yes," replied Mr. Abercrombie. "The situation has been explained to me several times, in some cases in greater detail than you have given me. But the fact remains that the house is no longer safe for all those children."

"We're not saying that the house is safe," replied Mr. Just Jim. "What we're saying is that if you give us the extension, we'll put the house in order. By the time we're done with it, I promise you that it will be completely up to code."

"Do you know how much work has to be done on that house? There's the roof and the porch and the windows, repair work and painting inside and out. This is a huge job, and a costly one. Where are you going to get the materials and labor you need on such short notice? Not to mention that the labor you need is skilled labor. And there's no way you can run a worksite like that without an experienced contractor," he said.

"Well, sir," said Mr. Just Jim. "How does a contractor with about fifty years experience sound? That's me and I've been out to the house, read the inspection report, and looked over the place already. I agree with everything in that report. It's very thorough, but I don't think that the house is a lost cause. Her foundation is solid and that's the main thing."

The building inspector nodded. "The foundation is solid. But where are you going to get the materials and labor?"

"We'll raise money for the materials," replied Mrs. Kaufman. "And there's a whole lot of people in the neighborhood and three of the churches in town who will provide the labor."

"I can teach them what they need to know," said Mr. Just Jim. "And I'll guarantee that the site will be a safe place to work. Now look here, I've written up all the specs and we have lists and plans for all our people and fundraising."

The Mr. Abercrombie took the papers he offered and carefully looked through them. Watching his face, Nanny could see in his mind that he was impressed with the presentation. Mr. Just Jim had done his work well.

"This is very professional," said the inspector. "However I must tell you that I do have concerns for the safety of the young children on the worksite. How do you plan on keeping them safe?"

This was Nanny's chance to jump in.

"Sir, I've been caring for young children for . . . many years," she said quickly. "I will take responsibility for making sure that the young children stay safe."

"Hmm," said the inspector. "You're making it very difficult for me to say no."

"Then why don't you just say yes and get it over with?" asked Mr. Just Jim. "The sooner we can start to implement this plan, the better. We've got folks that are just waiting for the word to get started."

The Mr. Abercrombie leaned back in his chair deep in thought. Nanny could see that he was weighing the pros and cons. She could also see that he was worried that if he said no, that they would be back with even more people.

"Sir," she said. "This issue will not go away if you say no. You'll have no end of phone calls and appointments with people who will try to persuade you to change your mind. And remember that if we can't bring the house up to code then you could still condemn it and serve the eviction notice."

"That's true," he said. "If you can pull this off, then it's worth giving you the two week extension."

Mrs. Kaufman spoke, "Sir, this project is important to a lot of people. You may see it as just another work job, but many of us see it as the work of God. If you are thinking that it can work, then maybe it's God putting the thought in your mind."

The Mr. Abercrombie chuckled. "No offense, ma'am, but I haven't believed in God in years."

"Well," said the old woman, "You may not believe in God, but He believes in you."

The building inspector sobered up quickly. Whoever these people were, they were deadly serious about this job. They deserved his respect.

"Since you people believe in this project so much, I'm going to grant you your extension. But only the two weeks. If you can't get it done by then, then the eviction notice goes through."

"Thank you, sir, you won't be disappointed," said Mr. Just Jim.

"I have a feeling that I won't be," replied the inspector, mostly because he wasn't expecting them to be able to do it. After they left, the inspector spent a long time thinking. What in the world did these people think that they were getting themselves into?

However, finally enforcing the eviction notice had not been a task that he was looking forward to. Putting a family of eight out on the street wasn't his idea of a good day's work. Cutting down a tree paled in comparison. Still and all, the last time he had seen those women in his office, he had felt that they were fighting for a lost cause. They had surprised him then. If these folks could spare him this most unpleasant task, he would be very grateful, just as long as they kept him off the evening news.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

While Nanny was at city hall doing battle with the building inspector, the Professor was engaged in a battle of his own, between what he knew was best for Phoebe and what she thought was best for herself. Finally, his own opinion won out and he found himself in his friend, Dr. Phil Meyers', office telling him of the most recent trauma for Phoebe and Trelawney. When he was done, Phil shook his head.

"Hal, I know how resistant that they both are to counseling, but you've really got to get them in here. The girl is in a terribly precarious position. She is in complete denial of a very damaging event in her life. And Phoebe sounds like she is in denial as well. Just telling herself that it didn't happen will not change the fact that it happened. And trying to solve everyone else's problems is her escape. Sooner or later the reality will hit each of them. The longer it takes, the worse it will be," said Phil.

"I don't know what else to do. I know that she wants to get engaged and get married and put this behind her. But I have as much as told her that I won't let that happen until she faces up to things," answered Hal. "It scares me how fragile she seems at times. When she cries and can't stop I feel so helpless."

"What do you do?" asked his friend.

"I hold her. I tell her that I love her, anything to comfort her. Then she'll finally cry herself out. Sometimes she falls asleep. Can you imagine what's it's like to put her to bed by herself? Especially when I know that the nightmares could return." said Hal. "Phil, we've come so close, but we've never made love. She wants me to so much, but I'm afraid for her."

"In what sense? She's a beautiful woman, Hal. You can't tell me that you haven't been tempted," asked his friend.

"Of course, I'm tempted. I haven't had this many cold showers since I went to boy scout camp as a kid. I'm afraid that it will add to the emotional strain. I'm afraid she'll get pregnant and then have the stress of the gossip, not to mention the judgment of her family," he said, feeling the frustration building again.

Phil looked at Hal and could see that he was near the breaking point himself. He decided that he needed to intervene before there were two breakdowns on his hands.

"Hal, if you don't bring her in here tomorrow morning at ten am sharp, I am going to call her up myself and tell her that she has to come in for your sake. Whatever else she thinks about counseling, I strongly suspect that if you ask her to come in for your sake she will," he said.

It was Hal's turn to be still and think. He knew how much Phoebe loved him. He knew that if he asked her to come in, for his sake, she would.

Later that night, when they were sitting in the living room after the kids were all in bed, he asked her. She promptly began to evade his question, but by now he had seen and heard nearly all her tactics. He sat before her, gently held her by the shoulders, and looked into her eyes.

"Phoebe, I love you and it's hell for me to see you like this. You have no idea of how I feel when you wake me up in the middle of the night, trembling in fear, and begging me to sleep with you. I know that you know that that is not going to solve anything. Please, do it for me, just this once,"

He suddenly found his own eyes welling up with tears. She looked back at him with amazement. He had always been the strong one. She had never seen him show the slightest inclination to cry, even when he was feeling the greatest sorrow at the fear that he might lose her.

It was then that she realized that this was something that he needed. She realized that this was how he felt when he was unable to comfort her. But she had the power now to reach him. She had been so wrapped up in herself and her sister, and in the way that things were done in their world, that she had forgotten that she might also need to adapt and to compromise with some of the things in his world. Their relationship had to have give and take in both directions. This was part of the mixed-marriage issue that the aunts had brought up.

Finding the courage inside of herself to admit that she was wrong she said, "Hal, I will go to the doctor for your sake. And I will cooperate, I promise. If you need this and I can see that you do, I will try. You have done so much for me and put up with me for all these months. I was wrong to say no in the first place."

Relaxing, he took her in his arms. "Thank you, Phoebe."

She felt his relief. He leaned back on the couch and pulled her on top of him, yet he seemed too tired to even attempt to arouse her. Instead, he held her, gently stroking her hair, as if it was he who now found her closeness soothing. She rested her head comfortably on his chest so that she could hear his heart beating. It was steady, even, and strong. She knew that it beat with love for her. She had her doubts about the effectiveness of talking with this doctor, but she would try to go in with an open mind. He had always made her feel safe, he deserved no less from her in return.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

The very next morning at ten am Phoebe found herself sitting beside Hal in Dr. Phil Meyers' office. She realized as soon as they entered the room that she had seen him before at university faculty functions. He shook her hand warmly, sat down behind his desk, and made himself comfortable. It was only now that she was able to put the name with the face. In spite of herself, she found him quite likable in his jeans and black teeshirt. He was leaning back in his chair with his feet up on the desk. He didn't much fit her image of a psychiatrist.

"Hello, Phoebe," he said genially. "I finally get to meet the woman who stole this guy's heart. You realize that you have dashed the hopes of quite a few ladies around here."

Hal was embarrassed and just said, "I'd say that one than one lady's hopes were dashed the minute she met the kids. I look a lot less desirable once they see that I have three kids and live in a zoo."

"But that's what I love most about you," said Phoebe fondly.

"Oh?" said Hal. "I was hoping that there were a few other things that were higher on your list."

"Oh, perhaps, just a few," she said playfully.

"Just a few," he said in mock annoyance. "Do you see what I have to live with, Phil? And if you think this is bad, you should hear the kids."

But Dr. Meyers was smiling. Despite her reluctance to come in, Phoebe seemed to be immediately at ease. He could see that they had a comfortable, easy-going relationship. Beneath the casual affection, there were obviously very deep feelings. If he didn't know better, he would think that they were already married.

"So, Phoebe, Hal tells me that you've been going through a rough patch," he said.

"In a manner of speaking," she said warily. "There have been a couple of occurrences that have disrupted the peace of the household."

"And your peace of mind," added Phil. She shifted uncomfortably towards Hal. He could see immediately that at the slightest mention of difficulty she leaned on him. Hal automatically put his arm around and she leaned comfortably on his shoulder. This was clearly a familiar posture for both of them. But before she could close her mind off to him he said quickly,

"Phoebe, everyone has troubles in their lives. You can't avoid them. But you also need to face them in order to move on."

"You sound like Mrs. Kaufman," she said uneasily.

"Well, I'm sure that I do. It's not exactly an uncommon opinion, whether it comes from a psychiatrist or a dear old friend," he replied.

"Well then," she answered back. "Why are we here?"

"Phoebe, I know that you don't hold much by counseling, but I think that you know that Hal here does," explained Dr. Meyers. "The difference between you and Hal coming in here versus sitting down and opening your heart to an old friend is that you might say that I am a disinterested party. Hal may have talked to me before, but I don't have a personal relationship with either of you. And I am bound by confidentiality rules. What is said in here, stays in here. Unless you choose to share it with someone outside this room."

Phoebe took a moment to consider this. She could see that he had a point. It made sense to talk to each other with someone who could help and the fact that she didn't have to worry about her private business being made public was an added benefit. As she felt herself relax, she realized that Hal was also settling down. It became obvious that he, that they, might need this. Absentmindedly he had picked up her hand, another comforting gesture. He knew that this was hard for her, but seemed determined to support her. Once again, she felt safe.

Phil watched with interest. After hearing Hal talk so much about her and his desire to care for her, he was honestly fascinated by his protective instincts. Like so many other people who had had the chance to observe them interacting as a couple it was obvious that this was no ordinary romance. Hal might talk of his physical passions, but he could see that what they felt was far deeper than the physical. Was it spiritual? Was it a connection of mind and soul so deep that he had only read of it, but he never had the chance to see it before between two real people.

He couldn't explain it, but he knew that it must be at the root of Hal's extraordinary self-control. Not many men would be able to resist such a beautiful woman. Especially one who was as devoted to him as Phoebe. In the back of his mind, he envied his friend. In spite of the pain she caused for him, this woman was definitely worth nurturing as his life's partner. Their commitment to one another was singular.

As he was thinking he realized that Phoebe and Hal were becoming anxious in the silence. They had come to talk. Immediately, Dr. Meyers said, "Hal, why don't you start us off?"

"Well, I'm just afraid that Phoebe is not really facing her issues, especially, the latest problems with Trelawney," he began.

"Okay, Hal, I want you to talk directly to Phoebe," Dr. Meyers interrupted. "Even if it's something that you've said before. I am only going to jump in if I have a question about what you are discussing or I think you are avoiding something."

He watched as a look passed between Hal and Phoebe. He seemed amused, but it was hard to read her expression.

"Hal," she said, looking directly up at him. "I don't want to talk about this because it frightens me, and it hurts. Whenever I think about it during the day, I dream about it at night."

Dr. Meyers nodded, thinking, now we're getting somewhere.

As they walked out forty-five minutes later, Hal said, "I'm sorry, I knew you have been in pain, but I didn't know how much. All I have ever wanted is to keep you safe. If you can't handle this right now, I understand."

She stopped and looked at him with eyes reddened from tears.

"You would do that?" she asked. "I know how much this means to you."

"But it's not worth it if it hurts you this much. I want to protect you. If you're not ready, I will give you more time," he answered, reaching out to hold her. They were in the atrium of the building where people were talking and walking all around them. Unmindful of them, she slipped into his embrace and could feel him stroking her hair. She looked up.

"You're right, I don't want to face this," she said. "But maybe this is the only way that I will."

She buried her head on his shoulder and could feel him heave a deep sigh of relief. As always, he held her tightly. He knew that she would go back, but this time she would not just be going back for his sake, but for her own as well.

Later that afternoon as Hal was finishing grading his final exams, Trelawney politely knocked on the door to the study and walked. Standing before him, with her hands neatly folded in front of her she said,

"Professor, you have made the right choice."

"About what?" he had barely looked up from his grading when she walked in.

"You are finally helping her. She does not like it, but you are. Thank you for once again saving my sister," she replied solemnly.

He looked up and saw that she was smiling, although almost imperceptibly. He was curious however. Neither Phoebe nor he had said a word to the kids about counseling. Considering the Figalilly resistance to the idea, he doubted that Phoebe would have mentioned it to her sister.

"I don't think that you will answer this, but how do you know?"

"I know. The unicorn is in retreat," she answered with a smile. Without another word she walked out.

Shaking his head, he returned to his papers. He didn't know what to make of the little girl. If she wasn't acting mischievously, she was behaving mysteriously. He wasn't at all sure of which one was more troubling.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

The next morning, Phoebe was having a conference at the nursing home with her four friends. The tables around them were cluttered with lists and figures and diagrams. Things were beginning to come together, but it was becoming obvious that someone was going to have to start to coordinate all the groups. Mr. Just Jim started with the building project,

"Let's see, it looks like that fellow Bill, the guy whose brother has the paint store is doing a good job rounding up the materials. Lottie, what are the numbers?"

"I would say that a thousand dollars would do it," she said. Fortunately she and her husband had owned a little grocery in the old neighborhood and she kept the books.

"Well," said Mrs. Darmstadt. "That's what Lois is hoping that they can raise at the entertainment. I'm a little nervous that she doesn't want to sell tickets. She wants to put out baskets for what she calls, 'free will' donations."

"That actually sounds like a good idea. You may get more money that way. And they will be selling refreshments," said Nanny.

"Well as soon as we get that money, we'll need to get those materials out to the site. That young fellow Pastor Jason is something. He's got men with trucks already lined up for pick and drop off, AND an army of young people to work out on the site. One thing I am worried about is how we're going to feed them. All those teenagers will get mighty hungry working out there all day" said Mr. Just Jim.

"Food? That's no problem. I'll call up Lois and get the Knights involved," said Mrs. Darmstadt.

"Definitely," said Aunt Lottie. "You can never go wrong if you put the Knights in charge of food."

"Who are the knights?" asked Nanny curiously.

"The Knights of Columbus of course," said Mrs. Darmstadt, as if this was common knowledge. "They are the male organizational half of the Columbiettes, more accurately it's the other way around. They are one of the biggest and best service organizations in the Church."

"Oh my!" said Mrs. Kaufman. "This is such a big job! How are we going to keep all these people in order?"

"Well," said Mr. Just Jim. "We have to think of it as a business, divvy up the jobs, and delegate."

"Pastor Jason can take care of the work crews, then each crew will have a leader who knows what they're doing. Fr. Bob can handle all these Columbus people. Once the entertainment is done, the ladies can step back and then we'll get the men out there on the site with the food. Seems that Pastor Paul is working with the family and Nanny you're going to handle taking care of the six kids. That Bill guy is handling the materials," he thought out loud.

"What happens when we get all that stuff on the site?" asked Aunt Lottie.

"Looks like you and me are going to inventory it, Lottie," he said.

"We'll get some people from St. Andrews to help you," said Mrs. Kaufman. "That's going to be a big job."

"Yeah, to begin with we gotta set all that stuff up in a staging area, so people know where they can get what they need to do their jobs," he agreed. "But if we set it up right it'll save time later. If we coordinate the materials with the work orders, everyone'll have what they need, when they it. And, we will track things in case we need more. At the end of each day, one of the crewmembers can do an assessment and see what they. We're going to need a good materials manager."

Nanny took a deep breath and said, "I guess that we're going to have to get moving."

Mr. Just Jim looked at Mrs. Kaufman and said, "Nanny, can we talk to you for a bit?"

"Of course, what can I do for you?"

"Nanny," began Mrs. Kaufman. "We're a little worried about you."

"Has the Professor been talking to you?" she asked suspiciously.

"No, is he worried about you too?" she asked.

Nanny was silent.

"I'll take that for a yes," said Mr. Just Jim. "Honey, we know that you don't like folks getting mixed up in your business, but you gotta let go. You're looking worn out. And you don't smile like you used to. We may be old, but we can handle this stuff. What else do we have to do except sit around here and look at each other?"

"You've got a family to take care. Those kids are a handful, and so is the Professor," said Mrs. Kaufman. "We don't want to see you running yourself down before school even starts."

Nanny looked around at them all. She could read the concern on their faces and realized that she wasn't hiding her troubles as well as she thought she was. She swallowed.

"You could be right," she admitted, not meeting any of their eyes.

"We are right," said Mrs. Darmstadt gently. "You do so much for others. It's time for you to do for yourself. If you get sick, then who's going to take care of your family?"

"We talked about it and we have this figured out," said Aunt Lottie. "Jim and I are going to handle the building materials and work site with Pastor Jason and Bill. Rosemary is going to manage Fr. Bob and the ladies and now the Knights, I guess. Mathilda will work with Pastor Paul and his folks. You are going to take of yourself."

Nanny looked at them again with suspicion.

"I promise you," said Mrs. Kaufman. "The Professor has not said a word to us. We can see it for ourselves."

Realizing that they weren't going to give her a choice, she agreed, "But, do I still get to take care of the Fleming children?"

"Of course you do," said Mrs. Kaufman soothingly. "Who knows more about taking care of children than our very own Nanny."

Nanny smiled. Looking around at her four friends, she could see that they really did care about her. She knew that Hal had not spoken to them, but they had seen all these things on their own. And it was good for them to feel connected to the larger community. They had so many gifts to share and no way to do it. Perhaps this was the start of something bigger.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Dinner at the Everett home that night was devoted to discussion of the "entertainment."

"Trelawney," said Hal. "Are you going to play something?"

Trelawney groaned. "I'm going to play everything! The kids from the folk group at St. Peter's asked me to play two songs from "Godspell" for them and the next thing I knew I had a pile of sheet music for every act in the show."

"What's 'Godspell'?" asked Butch.

"Well they call it a rock opera about the gospels of Jesus. It was on Broadway apparently and all the teens are mad for it now in the church groups. The music is actually quite good, very energizing. Easy to sing and play too," she replied.

"We're going to sing something from the Bible School," said Prudence.

"I know," she said. "And if you don't bloody well make up your minds, you'll be singing it _a capella_."

"Aka what? What does that mean?"

"Without musical accompaniment. I don't know when I am supposed to learn all these pieces," she complained.

"Why don't you just say no to some of the people?" asked Hal.

"I can't do that now. I've already said yes to everyone," she answered.

"Well the entertainment was your idea," commented the Professor.

"I know," she said. "But I didn't think that I was the only one in this whole town who could play piano."

"Well," said Nanny, "It will be over on Saturday and then you will have done your part."

She laughed. "Are you kidding? Pastor Jason said that I could help paint. And I'm looking forward to that, mostly because someone else can be in charge and I can have a little fun."

"How come she gets to paint and I don't?" asked Butch.

"You're too young," said the Professor. "You have to be at least twelve and even then I think they're pushing it. Pastor Jason is making an exception for Trelawney because she's playing the music for the entertainment. And she's skipped a year in school so she is in the same grade as other twelve-year-olds. I don't see you advancing yourself that way in school, young man."

"Pastor Jason said that he does't want to discourage anyone," said Hal. "He's a really groovy guy. Why can't we go to his church?"

The children all looked at the Professor, who couldn't think of a good answer for that, and just said, "I don't know, but usually you go to the church that you were baptized and raised in."

"It's a bit odd here in the States," commented Trelawney. "There are so many choices. At home you were either Catholic or in the Church of England."

Nanny had been thinking. "Families should stay together at church. I would not like to see us going in different directions on Sunday mornings. And I don't believe that we should completely change churches because of one pastor."

"Wouldn't it hurt Pastor Paul's feelings if we left his church because we liked Pastor Jason better?" asked Prudence.

"Yes, it would," said the Professor. "Groovy or not Hal, you'll continue to come to St. Andrew's with us."

"Okay, Dad," said Hal with a shrug. Like most teenagers he didn't much care. He would go to church where he was told. He looked at Nanny out of the corner of his eye. It made him feel happy to think that she had spoken up as if she was already their Mom and wanted to keep the family together. And Pastor Jason had told him that he could join his youth group, even if his family didn't join the Trinity Church.

That night, the Professor managed to get his work done early so that he could come and sit by Phoebe. He found her in the living room and putting his arm around her as he sat down, gave her a friendly kiss on the cheek and said,

"How's my best girl?"

She smiled and leaned back. "Doing better I think."

"Could it be that our meeting with Dr. Meyers helped?" he asked hopefully.

"I hate to admit it, but I think that it did. Mrs. Kaufman and her friends had a talk with me. They think that I'm doing too much and that I need to step back for a while," she said.

"Oh? How do you feel about that?"

She made a face. "You sound like Dr. Meyers. I felt like every time I said something the other day he wanted to know how I felt about it."

"Well, that is a part of his job. But part of my job is loving you and I want to make sure that you don't feel like your friends are intruding in your business," he answered.

"At first I thought that they were, and then I realized that they were just pointing out to me what they were seeing. I guess I really haven't been hiding my feelings as well as I thought. So I promised that I would step back and let them and the pastors handle more of the situation," she said. "And don't ask me how it feels because I don't know yet."

"I wasn't going to ask you that. I was going to ask if that meant that you would have more time for me," he said. "I only have the two weeks off before the new semester begins and it would be good to know that you were planning on saving some time for me."

She looked at him seriously and asked, "Have I been neglecting you?"

The Professor thought for a moment. "I don't think that neglecting is the right word. It just feels like everyone else comes first, the kids, your friends at the nursing home, the people at church. When I finally get you all to myself, it's late at night and we're both tired."

"That's true. What do you want to do about it?" she asked.

"It's odd, but I don't think that we've ever been out on a date. Of course, the idea of going out to dinner anywhere it town where everyone could see us and talk about us has very little appeal," he admitted.

"You could take me some place out of town," she suggested.

"Would you like that?" he asked.

"Of course I would. Just think, the two of us go out to dinner on our own and get away from the house and the kids and everything else," she said. "If we don't make time for ourselves, no one else will."

The Professor held her closer and thought about the possibilities. What most touched him was the fact that now that she appeared to finally be creating some time and space in her life, and the first thing she thought of was to fill it with him. He realized that this was the first time that she had demonstrated to him through her actions, not just her words, that she wanted him in a more prominent position in her life.

She was watching his face and he knew that she knew what he was thinking.

"Hal, I've done a lot of thinking since I talked to the 'gang' this morning. I think that maybe you haven't gotten that engagement ring on my finger, as people are starting to point out, because I haven't given you a chance. Could it be that you are just a little bit afraid that if you get stuck with me permanently that I'll neglect you?" she asked.

"How could you say such a thing? I feel your love every time you look at me, every time you touch me. Let's face it. I'm just as busy as you are. I mean, listen to me talking about a two week break as if once school starts we won't have time for ourselves," he said.

"Hal, it's not just you. I do it too. Now because of Trelawney's entertainment we obviously can't do anything this weekend, but what about next?" she asked.

"We'll do it!" he said. "And during the week we'll make more time for each other."

"Can we start now?" she asked playfully, as she moved closer.

"No time like the present!" he agreed.

As he began to kiss her, he began something deeper than physical passion. She was pressing her body close to his and he felt that he knew it. He leaned over so that he could lie on top of her. He knew that she could feel his arousal, as always, she responded. Yet this time it was different. It was as if he had been inside of her before. He couldn't tell if she felt it too, but he grasped her more tightly. He let his lips trail off of her and down her neck, slowly unbuttoning her blouse as he did. With his hands he could feel her body. There was a sense of recognition. He lifted himself above her and looked down. Looking deeply into her eyes, he said,

"This will make no sense to you, but I know you. I have been with you before, in every sense of the word. I don't know where or when, but it feels like it was a very long time ago."

"I know," she smiled that cryptic smile that she always had when something extraordinary was happening around them. "I feel it too. What we share transcends time and place. This does not feel new. It feels as though this love is very old."

"It feels as though this love has always been," he said in wonder.

She knew that he would not understand what they were feeling, and she doubted that his scientific brain could accept it. Thus she used the only explanation that might make sense to him.

"Perhaps it is because this love will always be. Perhaps that which will never end also had no beginning."

He looked at her as if he were seeing her for the first time, and yet he felt that he had always known her. She leaned forward to kiss him again and he surrendered to her and to the moment. Lost as he was in her, it was as if she were reaching inside his soul and finally finding him again. In his heart he also knew that into whatever dark place her genuine love of life and faith in the rightness of things had retreated, he had found it and was slowly leading it, and indeed her, back home to him. The long journey back towards the light had begun. It was no longer a journey that either could make alone.

He found himself responding eagerly to her renewed passion. He loved her this way, soaring and free. And wherever she would go, they would go together. Nothing could stop them now.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

**To Be Continued**

_Still waiting for Uncle Alfred? He shows up in the next chapter right in the nick of time to save "the entertainment" from trouble._


	3. Chapter 3: Wishes

**Chapter 3: Wishes**

The next day the madness and chaos started. The phone rang during breakfast with a call from Mr. Just Jim looking for a ride over to the Flemings. He wanted to take a look at the yard so that he could plan his staging area. Aunt Lottie had gotten on the phone with a couple of suppliers of the roofing materials so they could start on Monday. They were going to trust them for the payment after the fundraiser.

"Nanny, why don't you let me bring him over?" asked the Professor. "You've been doing a lot of running around this week."

She was about to protest, but saw him smiling at her as if he had just laid down a challenge.

"Thank you, Professor, I would very much appreciate that," she replied with a smile of her own. "I have a lot of baking to do for tomorrow night."

He looked back at her with mock frustration.

Watching the looks passing between them Trelawney commented, "I think that we've got a little private communication going on here."

Butch picked up on her tone, "Just as long as they keep it private, I don't care. Some of their public communication is getting pretty gross."

Nanny was standing beside the Professor and was startled when he grabbed her and pulled her down on his lap. She caught the playful look in his eyes and allowed herself to be drawn into a deep, passionate kiss. The response of the kids was classic.

Trelawney and Prudence were giggling while Butch made gagging noises. Hal very quickly excused himself. Oddly, despite the audience, Nanny found herself becoming lost in it. The Professor must have felt the same way, because he didn't let go either. Realizing that the joke had turned into something very real, Trelawney shooed out Butch and Prudence and called back,

"I do believe that that was one public communication that has turned private."

Nanny and the Professor looked up at each other and laughed.

"Well, that is one way to get some privacy," she said.

"I for one am going to take advantage of it," he said mischievously, and then proceeded to with great enthusiasm.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Later that morning, after he dropped Hal off at the high school, the Professor stopped off at the nursing home to pick up Mr. Just Jim.

"Well, Professor, I'm real glad see that it's you who's come to drive me over rather than Nanny. That poor girl is gonna run herself ragged if we don't watch out," he said.

"She told me that you all had spoken with her," answered the Professor. "You have no idea of how grateful I am. For the past couple of weeks, I have been very worried about her."

"Truth be told," admitted Mr. Just Jim, "I have been too. The girls make a fuss that you haven't staked your claim, so to speak, by putting a ring on her finger. But I've got a man's point of view. I can see that you have some good reasons for taking things slow. You love her, that's clear. She loves you, that's even more clear. She don't strike me as the kind of gal who would want to be claimed anyway. And you're not that kind of guy. Nope, you two are settled. No need for rings or fuss with you. Now I'm not fishing for information, so don't feel compelled to say anything on the topic if you don't like."

"Jim," said the Professor. "I do have a question, but it's a little off that topic. Just what was it like for you being married to your Juliet, being that she was Cornish and all."

"Well," he hedged. "Nanny and Trelawney are really not so much like her other than being from Cornwall themselves. Trelawney, who at times to me seems a little bit 'fey' as the Cornish would say, is really quite different, even though she is pianist like my Juliet was."

"'Fey.' What does that mean?" asked the Professor.

"Well it's an old expression for someone who is somehow not entirely of this world, not crazy, but a combination of intuitive and whimsical. Sometimes when I am talking to her, it feels as though she is much older than she is. But at other times, she seems very young for her age," he replied.

"I feel the same way," sighed the Professor.

"On the other hand, Nanny is very down to earth and intuitive, but also more light-hearted. Or you might say she was. We're worried that something has happened to change things. Again, I'm not prying, but something has happened recently to change her mood. You can't tell it so much when she's busy organizing and bossing everyone around. You see it when she quiets down, at rest so to speak. She's at rest, but not at peace. That's what Lottie says anyway. I don't agree with that old woman about a lot of things, but she's right about Nanny," he said. "She seems to have lost her spark."

"I know," answered the Professor. He was amazed at how perceptive the old man was. He could understand now why Phoebe liked to talk to Mrs. Kaufman about her troubles. "All I want to do is make her happy again."

"But I don't think that if you put a ring on her finger, it would really make her happier. I don't think that the thing that is bringing her down is related to you at all. You're the best thing that ever happened to her," explained Jim.

The Professor would have liked to ask him more, but they were pulling up to the Flemings' house and he could see Pastor Jason waiting for them.

"Jimbo, my man," said Pastor Jason cheerily. "And Professor Everett. I was expecting to see Nanny doing the honors."

"Well, Pastor," said Jim. "We got together and decided that Nanny needed a bit of a break. So the Professor is pinch-hitting."

"She's sort of taking a break," said the Professor. "I believe that right now she is at home baking for the entertainment tomorrow night."

"Oh, yeah, the entertainment," said Pastor Jason. "I had promised to emcee, but my wife is on my back for all of my commitments to the project. She's afraid that if I don't take a break now, that I'll crash and burn before the project is finished, or as soon as it's done. I hate to do it, but I am going to have to pull out. I hope that they can find a good replacement."

"Well," said the Professor. "It may be short notice, but I suspect if you let Nanny know, someone will pop up. Usually does."

Pastor Jason opened his mouth to ask a question, but he didn't get the chance.

Pastor Paul, who had been in the house, approached them hurriedly. Something was up.

"How's he doing today?" asked Pastor Jason.

"Not too good," answered Pastor Paul with a look of concern on face. "Hi, Professor! Hi, Jim!"

"I'll go talk to him," said Jim. "Seen his type before, after the Great War, you know? Shell shock. I can usually settle him."

"Thanks, Jim, but this whole thing has gotten him pretty shaken up," answered Pastor Paul. "I don't know what's worse for him, the idea that he might lose the house or the thought of all these people swarming in next week."

Jim looked concerned. "The noise alone will get to him. He startles easy, just like all of them. He don't like to talk much. People make him nervous. Likes me though, I know where he's been. We're like brothers, you know?"

Jim went off to the house by himself. Pastor Jason turned to the Professor, "Well, have you seen the house yet?"

"No, but I'm looking at it now. Quite an eyesore, isn't it?" he commented.

"I suspect that that's how it came to the attention of the city," said Pastor Jason. "One of the neighbors probably couldn't stand it any more."

"Well," said the Professor, looking around the yard that was full of toys, other clutter, and untended shrubbery. "If Jim's going set up his staging area out here, it's going to need to be cleared out."

"I got that covered," said Pastor Jason. "I got a crew of teens coming out tomorrow morning. Jim's going to tell me where he's going to set his stuff up and we'll make sure that the space is open."

"You're going to need a dumpster," commented the Professor.

"More than one," replied Pastor Jason. "We've got a lot more than furniture to clear out before we can start painting in there."

"You do anything about the hornets yet?" asked Pastor Paul.

"There's a pretty big nest up there in the attic. I've never seen anything like it," he said, turning to the Professor.

Pastor Jason grimaced. "I don't want the kids going near that nest - it's got to be at least four foot in diameter. I have a couple of guys coming out from one of the extermination companies in town. We have a donor who'll pay for it. Can't even think about starting the roof until it's out of the attic."

Pastor Paul looked surprised, but said, "It's unbelievable how these donors keep popping up every time we need them. It seems like every time that we run into something that we can't pay for, someone shows up with a checkbook."

"And what about that carpenter down the street?" asked Pastor Jason.

"What carpenter?" asked the Professor, clearly intrigued.

"Fellow down the street, name is Anderson. Sees us checking out the porch the other day and asks what we're up to. When he hears, he offers to set us up a couple of circular saws. He's gonna show the kids how to use them too. His only rule is that the only kids that can use them have to be at least eighteen," explained Pastor Jason, who then grinned. "And that's a couple of the girls. They're excited, but I think it's mostly because some of the boys are jealous."

"Well that's natural," said the Professor, thinking of Hal and Trelawney. "Boys don't like it when girls seem to be challenging their abilities in areas that they think should be their own. They get nervous that if the girls try, they might actually be better."

A young woman walked out of the house and toward them. Her mop of brown curls was disheveled and she looked upset.

"Joni!" said Pastor Paul. "You remember Professor Everett from church?"

"Of course. How's Nanny doing? I feel like I haven't seen her in ages," replied the young woman.

"She's managing," said the Professor.

"Well tell her I said, 'hey,' the next time you see her," said Joni, then and turning to Pastor Paul, "That TV guy Harvey Sloan wants to come out the house later to do a story about the work. I told him that he could come and talk to you church people out here, but he wants to come inside and talk to Eliot. He's not taking no for an answer."

"He is very persistent," said the Professor who had dealt with the reporter before. "But if you make sure that he can't get in, he probably won't make any trouble. Better yet, as long as he can find someone to talk to, he's pretty easy to distract."

"And we do want the publicity," added Pastor Paul. "We need to get the story out."

"You should get Jim out here talking to him," said the Professor half-seriously. "He'll give him an earful about the treatment of the Vietnam vets. That would keep him busy."

"That's not a bad idea," said Pastor Jason. "I suspect that this is a much larger issue than just this one family. Getting the word out might help other families in the same position."

"Well you can get the word out all you want," said Joni. "Just keep those reporters and those cameras out of my house and away from my husband."

"We will definitely do that," Pastor Paul assured her. "Jason and I will be here to talk to him and we could bring over one or two of the kids. How about that kid Topher? He seems like a well spoken young man."

"I'm sure he'd love it," said Pastor Jason. "How about that little pianist Trelawney? She certainly is a spark plug."

"No!" said the Professor so firmly that the others all looked at him in amazement.

After a moment of silence he mumbled, "I'm going to go talk to Jim and Eliot. I've known Eliot for a few years, even since before he went out there to Nam. Maybe I can help."

"I've got to go back too," said Joni. "Would you like a cup of tea or coffee, Professor?"

Pastor Jason looked surprised at his vehemence. When he was out of earshot with Joni, he turned to Pastor Paul, "Boy I really stepped on a land mine, so to speak. What's the story with that? He isn't the girl's father, is he?"

"Not exactly," said Pastor Paul. "The story is a bit complicated. He's the girl's legal guardian here in the US, but she's actually Nanny's sister. When their parents died, Nanny was designated as legal custodian in England. Since the Professor didn't want to lose his housekeeper, or so we thought at the time, he opened his home to the child. It's pretty much common knowledge now that he and the woman are in love.

"Everyone's been expecting the announcement of an engagement and then a marriage," he continued, "But things are a little rough at the moment. Nanny and the girl have both been through a really hard time and neither has really recovered. I haven't talked to the Professor myself, but I suspect that he's trying to give her time to grieve and heal. He's extremely protective of her."

"You can see that," said Pastor Jason. "It's obvious that his kids love her like a mother. I couldn't quite tell how the girl fit into the family. But now it makes sense since they both have British accents."

"The girl is high-spirited, but also high-strung," said Pastor Paul. "She's very fond of the Professor, she seems to have adopted him herself as a father. And he is even more protective of her than of Nanny. If I know Trelawney, she would love to be on TV. But she's also very young and unpredictable, easily becomes emotional, even frightened at times.

"He's right in this case, we need to keep her out of the spotlight. Why don't we see if Fr. Bob can get that gal Lois out here? She's one sharp cookie and I think she would handle herself well on camera. And it would give us a representative from each church."

"Good point," said Pastor Jason. "I have to admit that in the beginning, I was a little concerned about having the three churches combine efforts. So far, everyone's managed to work together very well."

"I'll say," said Pastor Paul. "I think that it's those characters over at the nursing home. They're the ones keeping everybody in line. You have to see what that rec room looks like. You'd think that old Jim was planning a battle campaign or something."

"I'll have to go over and check it out. Maybe Harvey Sloan can go over there for part of the story," grinned Pastor Jason. "I have to admit that I get a kick out of the old guy."

"What old guy?" called a voice from behind him.

"Oh, Jim," said Pastor Jason. "I didn't realize that you were back."

"Obviously, or you wouldn't have been talking about me like I'm not here. Pastor Jason, we've got plans to discuss. Pastor Paul, the Professor wants to have a word with you," said Jim.

Pastor Jason and Jim began to watch around the yard, while Pastor Paul met the Professor up on the porch.

"Just keep Trelawney off TV," he started off without preamble. "I don't want her face on TV, or picture in the newspaper. In fact I want her kept out of the story completely."

Pastor Paul was amazed by how forceful he was. "Professor, I am not sure that you realize how strongly you are coming across. Now I know that you are protective of the girl but . . ."

"But nothing," interrupted the Professor, but then stopped himself. "Look Pastor, I'm sorry. I don't mean to be rude or uncooperative, but Phoebe and I have a very good reason to worry about her being in the public eye."

Pastor Paul raised his eyebrows at the use of Nanny's first name. The Professor took a deep breath.

"Okay, Pastor," said the Professor. "You might as well know officially. Phoebe and I are in love and when we manage to work through some issues at home, we will be getting married. I can assure you that even though we are living under the same roof, there is no monkey business going on. I love and respect her, and would never do anything to dishonor her."

Seeing how serious he was, Pastor Paul decided to try and lighten things up a little. "With all those kids around, I don't know how you even get a moment to yourselves, let alone engage in monkey business. Professor, we all know that you love her and how much you care for her and her sister. Nobody's going to put her on TV, except maybe herself."

"I'll talk with her," he said. "She'll lie low around the reporters once she knows how much it would upset her sister. The last thing that we need is for that creep to . . . "

Realizing that as usual, his temper had gotten the better of him, the Professor stopped and said, "Please Pastor, forget that I said that."

"Professor, I can see that you don't want to talk about this, but I'm no fool and I can fill in the blanks," said the Pastor carefully. "Now that I understand how high the stakes are, I will make sure that her identity is protected and her picture stays out of the press. But you know, it's okay to ask for help. Any time you want to talk, please know that I'm here."

"Thanks, Pastor Paul, I appreciate that. I am speaking with someone at the university and he is helping. We've even managed to get Phoebe in for some counseling with me," he replied. "I would also appreciate it if you didn't say anything about Phoebe and me. I know people are talking, but I'm afraid that if we verify the rumors it'll make things worse. I'm so proud of her that I would announce it from the rooftops how much I love her, but she is a very private person. I respect that, and I hope you can too."

"Don't worry Professor," he said. "Your secret is safe with me. And I would never think that your relationship is anything less than the most honorable. It's just the kind of people that you are. But you realize that until you finally do get married, the rumors will persist."

"Yeah, I know," sighed the Professor. "And probably for a few months after that if you catch my drift."

"Yes, I do," answered the Pastor. "But you do understand that the longer you wait to get married, the more the gossip will have a chance to get out of hand."

"Well, she's not ready to get married," said the Professor, feeling his frustration rising again. "No amount of talk is going to force me to push her into something that she's not yet ready to handle. After the latest setback, I just want to help her get strong again."

"Don't worry," soothed Pastor Paul. "We'll stand behind you and help you take care of her."

The Professor smiled for the first time. "Here comes Jim, looks like it's time to take him back for lunch. Give me a call when you want him back here."

"Don't worry about that, Professor. We'll take care of getting him back here. Why don't you spend some time with that lovely lady who's waiting at home for you?"

The Professor smiled again, "Can I consider that an order from the big man upstairs?"

"Sure! I'll see you tomorrow," said Pastor Paul.

After he dropped Jim off at the nursing home, he returned home to find the kitchen smelling delicious and Phoebe alone.

"Where's Prudence?" he asked.

"Her friend Mary Jane Shuster invited her over for the afternoon," she answered as she pulled a tray of cookies out of the oven. She turned around to see him leaning on the center island with a devilish look on his face.

"And just what are you up to?"

"Oh, I'm admiring the view. The one I get of you when you're pulling something out of the oven," he replied with a smile.

"Sorry," she said turning off the oven. "But that was the last batch."

"I'm not sorry in the least," he answered. "In fact, there's a view that I much prefer of you."

"And what would that be?" she asked, as she walked over and put her arms around his neck. He responded by putting his hands around her waist and pulling her up against him. Drawing closer, she met his lips in a deep kiss. He pulled back for a minute,

"How long before the first one comes back?"

"Oh, I'd say around four," she answered as he began to kiss her neck.

"It's very convenient that Prudence's friend invited her over today," he whispered in her ear.

She smiled and said, "Yes, it certainly is a marvelous coincidence."

"Mmm, hmm," he was done with words. He had every intention of taking full advantage of their few hours of freedom.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

By the time the children were back that afternoon, the goodies for the entertainment were packed up and ready to go. Nanny and the Professor were more at ease than they had been in quite a while. The time alone, mostly spent talking and engaging in some good old-fashioned making out, had given them the chance to continue to find their way back to the place where they had been before the turmoil created by the aunts.

"We'll still go back to see Phil Meyers next week, right?" he asked her anxiously at one point.

"Of course we will," she responded quickly. "We'll keep going until we feel that he's helped us to move on."

Hal was relieved. He liked the way that she said "we." She knew that they still had work to do and was willing to proceed. He saw her smiling fondly at him.

He said, "Whatever needs to be faced, we'll face it together."

"Just as we will for the rest of our lives," she agreed.

Now with all the kids back in the house, the time for personal conversation was over. They were all trying to talk at once. Hal decided to pull Trelawney aside.

"Trelawney, I want you to promise me something," he said.

"Yes, Professor," she said and waited.

"There's going to be a lot of news publicity with this whole project. I want you to make sure that you stay away from the reporters and cameras, especially the television cameras," he said.

She nodded. "I understand. I promise."

He was relieved. He knew that she never made a promise that she knew that she would or could not keep. She reached up and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you for keeping me safe, for keeping us safe. I love you, Professor. My sister could not have found a more wonderful man. I know that you will always treasure her, as she treasures you."

In what had become her custom after making one of these kinds of pronouncements, she simply turned and left. A little "fey" Jim had described her. As he had explained the term, it certainly seemed to fit.

For a moment he was lost in thought, when from the front yard he heard a large cockney accent singing, "My baby fell down the drainpipe!"

"Uncle Alfred!" squealed Prudence from the living room, as a stampede of feet came from all over the house and out the door.

The Professor smiled to himself and shook his head, as he remembered Pastor Jason's comment about the entertainment needing an emcee. He hadn't even told Phoebe about it yet.

By the time he got outside to greet Uncle Alfred, he was surrounded by the children, including Trelawney whom he had hoisted up in his arms. Nanny was standing a little bit apart with a look of part-amusement and part-trepidation.

"Uncle Alfred! What brings you back from the South Seas?" he asked.

"Why if it isn't the Professor!" sang out Uncle Alfred. "After I heard all this talk about our Phoebe here, and little Miss Trelawney, I couldn't stay away. I do believe that you have taken both of these lovely ladies under your wing, so to speak."

"Oh, yes, Uncle Alfred, he has!" Trelawney had swiftly changed from her wise, little oracle-like persona into a bubbling eleven year old again. "He is our gallant knight! Uncle Alfred! He has slain the unicorn!"

"Well so he has, little one! So he has!" replied Uncle Alfred, playing along, although not understanding what she was talking about. "Why if I'd a been here, I'd have kilt that unicorn me self. Then I would have won the hand of me fair Phoebe, and she would'na got stuck with this lot."

"Oh, Uncle Alfred," said the girl laughing. "You don't slay unicorns, you make people laugh!"

Putting her down, Uncle Alfred said, with mock seriousness, "Why little Trelawney, have you no faith in me capabilities?"

"Only if you intended to kill him with laughter!" she laughed. "Besides, Phoebe is now promised to the Professor. You have lost your chance!"

"Don't I know it," he said under his breath, and then loudly, "So how is the lucky couple?"

"Fine and dandy," said the Professor. "And you showing up right now is a wonderful coincidence. In fact, this time you granted a wish before I even had a chance to make it."

"I did?" he asked puzzled, then recovering himself confidently continued, "A' course I did! Always known me self to be in the right place at the right time."

"Well, now that you've granted one wish," said Nanny. "Let's just say that enough is as good as a feast."

"Always was a spoiler, wasn't you Phebe?" said Uncle Alfred cheerfully.

"Whose wish did you grant?" asked Prudence.

"Mine!" said the Professor, jumping in right away. He could see that Phoebe was looking annoyed that the wish granting had started before Uncle Alfred had even walked in the door. The others looked at him.

"Pastor Jason was supposed to emcee the entertainment tomorrow night, but his wife apparently decided that he needed a break before the project started. I can't think of a better stand in than old Uncle Alfred here," he explained.

"A stand in?" asked Uncle Alfred. "A stand in? Alfred P. Wiggins stands in for no man."

"You did the last time," Hal reminded him. "You stood in for the Ugly Ducklings when they backed out of the university fair."

"Well, um, that was different," he said.

"In what way?" asked Nanny drily. "That was a good cause, and this one certainly is. Besides, I believe that I was the only one who didn't get a wish the last time."

The look on Trelawney's face told her that she had figured out exactly what was going on. She opened her mouth to say something but Phoebe gave her a sharp look and she quickly closed it.

"Well," said Uncle Alfred, "If you're going to put it THAT way."

"I am."

"Then 'a course I'll grant your wish," he said.

The children all looked pleased and the Professor, amused.

"What the bloody hell is an emcee anyway?" he asked the Professor _soto voce_.

"He introduces acts and tells jokes during a variety show," answered the Professor quietly.

"Well then," said Uncle Alfred loudly. "I'll be the best . . . Emcee, that ever was. Now I'm pretty weary after my journey. Any chance I could get a little lie down?"

"You can sleep in Nanny's room again. Nanny can sleep with me and Trelawney," said Prudence.

"Now Phebe," said Uncle Alfred. "Here I go putting you outta your room again. Sure you don't mind?"

"She'd mind a lot less if . . ." began Trelawney. But she shut up the minute she caught the eye of her sister. Fortunately, everyone else was too excited to notice. The kids all led Uncle Alfred inside, but the Professor stopped Nanny before she could follow.

"Amazing coincidence that he just happened to show up before I had even told you that Pastor Jason had had to back out," said the Professor with a twinkle in his eye.

"Do really think that I am responsible for this. After all the upset he caused the last time he was here?" she replied with annoyance.

"Only for you, Phoebe. And I do recall another time when someone showed up in the nick of time on my doorstep before I had even asked," he replied.

"And who might that be?" she asked innocently.

"Why it's this very lady standing before me," he said.

"Well, you did need help," she answered demurely.

"But I specifically remember that I did NOT place an ad with the agency," he replied.

As always, when he tried to pin her down with one of these occurrences, she evaded the issue.

"Well, with Uncle Alfred around tonight, there will be someone to keep the children occupied so that we can . . ."

The Professor grinned. "That's another one of those coincidences. No sooner do we talk about finding more time together than the kids are suddenly distracted into all sorts of activities."

This time she looked at him with a glance that was definitely NOT innocent. Despite that fact that they were still standing on the front lawn, he dropped a quick kiss on her lips and whispered in her ear,

"This is the kind of circumstance that I do not need an explanation for. I'll just have to make due with accepting it . . . and making due," he added playfully.

"Making . . ." she began outraged.

"Gotcha!" he said with a boyish grin. Then giving one of her blonde curls a tug he went to the door. Gesturing broadly, he opened it and held it for her. With a careless shrug, she entered. The minute the door was closed, he swept her into a close embrace and began to kiss her. But just as they were "getting into it," a voice came from upstairs,

"Do you have to do that where everyone can see you?" asked Butch.

"Can't stop true love, Butch, me boy," answered Uncle Alfred."

"I don't want to stop true love," said Butch. "I just want to stop . . . that."

"Can't have one without the other, Butch, old man."

"Uncle Alfred, I wish that . . ."

Nanny quickly disengaged herself.

"Uncle Alfred, there will be absolutely no more . . ."

"That's okay," interrupted Butch. "I just got my wish."

"Just got his . . ." muttered the Professor darkly, annoyed at the interruption.

"Oh don't worry, Hal," said Nanny. "In a few years, he'll be so busy with his own young lady friends, that he won't be bothered by us.

"And we'll be an old married couple by then," he said tenderly, holding her more tightly in his arms.

"Married, yes," she said. "But old? Bite your tongue, Hal. We're going to live forever!"

Risking further irritating Butch, Phoebe looked up and opened her mouth slightly for the expected kiss. Thinking to himself that would be a shame to disappoint her, Hal happily obliged. His mind was divided however, as he began to contemplate the possibilities for their unexpected private time.

For once, Phoebe didn't even think about organizing things. Instead, she gave herself up to his kisses and the moment. He had, after all, insisted that she let go of some of the workload.

"This is how things ought to be," said a young girl's voice quietly from above on the staircase.

They looked up at Trelawney, who was walking down slowly and had once again assumed her pose of a wisdom figure.

"Sorry I bothered you," she said with a hint of humor in her voice. "Carry on!"

Phoebe and the Professor looked at each other and then back at her.

"I'll leave you be," she said, as she walked by. "But I believe that the others will be down in a few minutes."

"What the hell?" asked the Professor.

"I have no idea," said Phoebe with a sigh.

"Okay," replied the Professor. "Let's not waste our opportunity trying figure HER out."

Returning to each other, they kissed each other until they heard footsteps and Butch's voice.

"Yuck!"

"You better get used to it, me boy," said Uncle Alfred. "I do hear tell, that that's how married folks act."

"Uncle Alfred," said Prudence. "I wish they would get married."

"So do I," he agreed, but then quickly caught himself. "A' course they'll get married. Don't Uncle Alfred always grant your wishes?"

"Why didn't you stop her?" murmured the Professor to Nanny, having immediately picked up on the fact that she didn't put a stop to the wish granting for once.

"I still haven't gotten my wish yet," she said enigmatically.

He looked into her eyes and then held her a little tighter. By the time all the others were downstairs, the Professor was back in his study and Phoebe in the kitchen. Through the closed doors to the living room he heard five voices, singing badly,

"My baby fell down the drain pipe!"

Phoebe could hear them from the kitchen and she smiled, and said cheerfully to herself,

"You've still got it, Phoebe girl! You've still got it!"

****

By dinnertime, the Professor was ready to break the ukulele over Uncle Alfred's head. Although the children couldn't get enough of his silliness, he was done. Walking into the kitchen, he asked Phoebe for some aspirin. Looking at him with amusement, she silently handed over the pills with a glass of water.

"Don't say it!" he growled. Wordlessly she looked back at him with wide, innocent eyes that said, "I told you so" more plainly than if she had spoken them.

"I wasn't going to say anything other than dinner will be ready in ten minutes," she said. "You know Butch is always looking to earn some extra pocket money. Perhaps you could pay him to pinch the ukelele, at least until the show tomorrow night."

"That reminds me," he said. "I've got to call up Lois and let her know that she has an emcee."

"The number is by the phone," said Nanny.

He looked at her suspiciously, but she shook her head and said, " All the numbers are by the phone. You know I need them too."

The call was a quick one. Lois was busy getting ready to leave for the Flemings for the TV interview. Before she hung up she said, "Don't forget to turn on the TV at seven!"

"I wouldn't miss it," said the Professor. As he turned, he noticed that Nanny's face was the picture of concern.

Taking her in his arms he said, "Don't worry. I've spoken to both pastors and the young lady herself. We are going to do everything possible to keep her name and face out of the press."

"I am safe from unicorn, Phoebe," said Trelawney solemnly, suddenly appearing at the doorway. "My gallant knight will protect me."

Then quickly, "Is dinner ready? We're all quite starving."

Nanny nodded, yes, and she skipped off to tell the others. Nanny and the Professor looked at each other in bewilderment. Trelawney's affect seemed to have changed instantaneously from serious to cheerful.

"Don't ask," said Nanny. "I have no idea whatsoever."

"Aren't you worried?" asked the Professor. "To be honest, I am."

"Not yet," she said carefully. "But if this behavior continues, I may start to."

"Phoebe," said the Professor. "Is there any remote possibility that we could get her in to talk to Phil and cooperate with him?"

Phoebe looked ahead and sighed, but before she could answer, Uncle Alfred and the kids came running into the kitchen making a joyful ruckus. The Professor watched Trelawney who was just as happy and enthusiastic as the others.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Later that evening, Phoebe and Hal got their uninterrupted time alone. Uncle Alfred had given him a wink and a naughty look when Hal had asked him to keep the kids busy. They had decided to retreat to the backyard. It was a good choice. From the house, they could hear the merriment and laughter as Uncle Alfred pulled out all the stops to entertain the children.

Sitting together as they were, Hal decided that he really didn't want to talk much. He didn't even really want to engage in a lot of "monkey business" as he had called it earlier today. He just wanted to sit and enjoy being in Phoebe's presence and share in her enjoyment of the stars.

"I feel the same way," she said snuggling closer.

"I always feel that the stars are so much more beautiful when I look at them with you," he said.

"Me too," she answered. "It doesn't matter how beautiful they are. When I'm looking at them without you, all I can think about is how much I am missing you."

He kissed her head, which was comfortably settled on his shoulder. He closed his eyes and matched his breathing to hers. For some reason, this helped him to focus better. It helped him to clear his mind of all thoughts except for her, resting easily in the starlight. In the peaceful stillness of the summer night, he felt so much in love with her that his heart would burst.

He felt her slightly shift and opened his eyes to see that she was gazing up at him with her deep blue eyes, luminous as they always were in the starlight. He held her gaze steadily until she settled once again on his shoulder. Within his mind and heart, he heard her low, sweet voice,

"Me too."

****

_One more chapter to go! Uncle Alfred helps the entertainment to be an enormous success, and helps manage the nosy reporter!_

**To Be Continued**


	4. Chapter 4: Act I

**Chapter 4: Love Out Loud Act I**

Somewhere along the way, the entertainment had been named, "Love Out Loud." Handmade posters had popped up all over town and everyone was talking about it. Then, the Friday afternoon interview on the Harvey Sloan show really got things moving. Based on the phone calls she was getting, Lois Lenihan, president of the Columbiettes realized that the parish hall at St. Peter's would never accommodate all those who planned on coming. Well-connected with everyone in town, first thing on Saturday morning she was on the phone with Dr. Frank Agostine, the school superintendent.

As a long-standing PTA president at the high school, each year she worked very hard to get the school budget passed. She had never called in her favors before. Something had always told her that she should wait for something really big, and this was it.

"Dr. Agostine, this is Lois Lenihan. I'm calling to ask you for an enormous favor," she began.

"Why, Lois, I just saw you on TV last night. You looked great and so did our friend Topher, the physics genius. I don't suppose that this has anything to do with the situation on Elm St., does it?" he answered genially.

"As a matter of fact it does," she said. "Our little entertainment that we had planned has suddenly mushroomed out of all proportion to our expectations. The parish hall at St. Peter's will no longer be large enough to accommodate it. I was wondering if it would be possible to use the high school auditorium?"

There was silence on the other end of the line. Frank Agostine was caught in the horns of a very huge dilemma. Opening up the auditorium for such a performance meant more than just unlocking the doors. He'd need to get in maintenance staff and some of the theatre people. Extra hours over the summer meant double time. Just the cost of the lights and the air conditioning promised to be large. There was no way that he could approve these expenditures on his own. He could call an emergency meeting of the school board, but he didn't even know if there were enough people in town to constitute a quorum.

He hated to say no to Lois after all the years of support that she had given him, but there wasn't much else that he could do. When he explained his situation to her, he could hear the disappointment in her voice.

"I understand, Frank," she said. "But I still have some favors out there in town that I could call in. If I can solve some of these issues, would you support us?"

"Lois, if the decision was entirely up to me, I'd move heaven and earth to get that auditorium up and running. I was out there on Okinawa during the Second World War. The situation that we have with some of the boys coming back from Nam makes me sick. I have nothing against the ideals of the anti-war protesters, but they seem to have no respect for those that do go to fight," he said. "If you can do something to get the board to agree to open up the facility, I'll make sure it happens. The way things stand now though, I think that you would need a miracle."

"If it takes a miracle," said Lois. "We'll find one. Thanks for your support, Frank."

Hanging up the phone, she began thinking of the possibilities. Then, she picked it up again to call Fr. Bob. There was no time to waste calling all over town to try and pull something together, she was going to go straight to the top.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Saturday morning in the Everett home began just as chaotically as Friday morning had. The phone rang and the call was from Topher for Hal.

"Hey, man! Did you see me on TV last night? I was getting phone calls all night. So was Mrs. Lenihan. It seems like everyone in town is coming tonight," he said.

"That's great!" said Hal. "Where are we going to put them?"

"You are not going to believe this, man. Mrs. Lenihan got Fr. Bob to call the chairman of the school board and we are going to get to use the high school auditorium," Topher was practically yelling into the phone.

"Alright!" answered Hal just as enthusiastically.

"You gotta get Trelawney down there. NOW! And I need you, man. Anyone else you can grab. We are going to really need to pull this together fast! You wouldn't believe all the technology we have to work with! And tell Trelawney we have a pit!" Topher was yelling now.

"Okay, man. We'll be there, and I'll bring my Dad," replied Hal.

"Bring me where?" asked the Professor once Hal had hung up the phone.

Realizing that he had just committed his Dad to something without even asking, Hal said, "Dad, the greatest thing has happened. There are so many people that want to come to the show that they've had to move it to the high school. Trelawney and I have to get down there right away and, well, since you know all about computers and stuff, I said that you would help out too."

"Hal, do you really think that I want to spend my whole day . . ."

"Professor, may I speak with you for a minute?" asked Nanny who had started to pull out her baking sheets again. Looking significantly at Hal, "Alone."

Hal got out while the going was good. He knew that if he left Dad to Nanny that she would help cool him off and get him to help with the show.

"Phoebe . . ." Hal started, once his son had left.

"Hal, I know how you feel about your Saturday morning golf, but please, do this for me," she said. "It's not about the situation or the show, it's about my sister. I don't want her down at that high school with only Hal there from the family. And I also don't want to have to explain to him why he has to look out for her. This is getting much bigger than I thought it would."

Hal could see that she was disturbed. Once again, he could feel the clouds of fear and doubt descending. He knew that if he didn't go that she would spend the whole day worrying. He took her in his arms and said,

"Don't worry, honey, I'll keep our girl safe."

He felt her relax immediately. He knew that she loved it when he referred to Trelawney as "our girl." After all, in his mind she was his girl, his second beloved daughter. Behind him he heard Hal's voice,

"Can you drive us . . . Oh, I'm sorry."

"That's okay, Hal," said the Professor turning around. "If you get me the car keys we'll leave right now. Is Trelawney ready?"

Hal grinned. "She's already in the car. She can't wait to get into that orchestra pit."

"Orchestra pit?" asked the Professor.

Hal nodded. "You wait and see what she has planned. It would have been great at St. Peter's, but at the high school it will be amazing."

Turning back to Phoebe he gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Don't spend the whole day baking. And get Prudence to help you. And I'll take Uncle Alfred with me so he can get ready and stay out of your hair. And Butch, he can help too."

She looked up at him with a very interesting look on her face. He gave her another quick kiss, this time on the lips, and then rushed out. Before he could get out of the kitchen, she called,

"Hal!"

"Yes, dear?" he answered as he turned to face her.

"You're talking to me as if I was your wife," she said with a smile.

"I know," he said with a cheerful grin, and bolted out the door.

In a minute, Prudence came in and said, "Daddy told me to come in and help you. Nanny! Are you alright?"

Nanny was standing, leaning against the counter and hugging herself.

She looked up at Prudence and replied, "I am marvelous, sweetheart! Absolutely marvelous!"

Prudence smiled back, thinking, she's in love. This is how it happens in all the storybooks. Nanny is in love with my Daddy and we're going to live happily ever after.

Phoebe read her thoughts and kissed the little golden head, she herself thinking, Yes we are, darling. Yes, we are.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

When the Professor, with his kids and Uncle Alfred in tow, arrived at the high school auditorium, the place looked like bedlam. At first he thought that everything was out of control, but then he saw Lois and Fr. Bob giving orders.

Fr. Bob did not fit his image of a Catholic priest at all. Only a little older than Pastor Jason and a little younger than Pastor Paul, he was a force of nature. He easily stood over six feet tall. His tanned looks under a mop of dark brown hair made him a good looking young man. In his jeans and plaid shirt, he had his sleeves rolled up and was busy directing a group of teens that were building some kind of a set.

Like all the teens that he had met so far working on the project, Hal was impressed not only by their polite manners and intelligence, but their spirit of community service. He was glad that his own children were having the opportunity to work with them. These were the kind of role models that he wanted them to have.

He was a little uncomfortable when he saw Trelawney run up to Topher. He picked her up and gave her a big hug. She squealed and started laughing. A voice from behind him said,

"Don't worry, Professor, it's harmless."

He turned to see Lois standing behind him.

"Pastor Paul spoke with me about her," she explained. "And I spoke with Topher. He thinks of her as a little sister anyway, since he has four at home. He has appointed himself as her personal bodyguard. In fact he'll be in the pit tonight with her playing the drums."

Professor Everett took a deep breath.

"I'm here to help with your tech stuff, lighting, sound anything that you want. I promised Nanny that I'd keep a close watch on her," he said.

Lois looked sympathetic.

"I've been working with her all week and I can tell that she must be a handful. But her vitality and energy are contagious. You should see the band that she put together. She's such a little charmer that she roped in some of the most talented musicians at the high school. Of course she's got amazing musicianship herself," she said.

Watching her pull out her music and begin to set up the band, he said softly, "I love her like my own child."

"She's a beauty. And so is her sister. I don't know what I would have done without her this week. I never brought a problem to her that she couldn't solve, and it was always with a cheerful smile. Finding Uncle Alfred for us was like a gift from heaven," she said.

The Professor grimaced. "Well after spending the day with him, you'll think he's a gift from somewhere, but I doubt it will be heaven."

Lois looked at him, standing there in what she was sure was his golf clothes. There was a man who loved his family. She knew that he and Nanny had an "understanding" as Rosemary Darmstadt had called it. She thought, those kids are so lucky that they will have such loving parents. There were not many like them any more.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

As Phoebe and Prudence worked, she thought back to the Harvey Sloan show that they had all watched the night before. She had first met Harvey Sloan over a year ago when he brought his television crew to film the protest demonstration that she had organized in front of Mrs. Kaufman's house. The city had planned to cut down the beautiful old tree where the children had built a tree house and they were trying to get the word out. The protest had been a success and the tree saved. The TV coverage may or may not have helped, but it had made for a good human interest story. However, she knew that this was an even better story.

The interview had taken place outside of the Fleming house. Hal had told her that in order to keep Sloan away from the family, the pastors had brought out some of the other volunteers to fill in the gaps. Lois was there from St. Peters, Topher from Trinity, as a teen volunteer, and Jim was there of course bringing all of his opinions about veterans with him, and finally Pastors Jason and Paul. The two who dominated the interview were Topher and Jim.

She had liked Topher from the first minute that he had spoken up at the meeting at St. Andrews. Despite Sloan's efforts to over-dramatize the situation, the young man's easy-going attitude towards problem solving and community spirit shone through. He talked about the desire of the teens to help out, how they were excited about the show, and how they couldn't wait to get to the construction and painting at the house. It was no wonder that half the town was anxious to support them.

Jim had downplayed his own role in the project, emphasizing the teamwork of the churches and the youth. He preferred to make his pitch for the meeting the needs of the veterans. Sloan seemed to really enjoy the drama of returning veterans and there was no doubt in her mind that he would be following up that story. No doubt Jim was very pleased with himself.

Lois was very business-like, giving out dates, times, and phone numbers. The two pastors pretty much just stood by and smiled. At the end of the show however, she had been most impressed by Sloan's summary,

"So there you have it ladies and gentlemen, what started out as the simple desire of a church to help one of its families has blossomed into an up swell of support from all over the city. In what can only be a first, two usually marginalized groups within our community, the teenagers and the elderly have banded together to lead this incredible effort. Despite the fact that many people view teenagers as troublemakers and problems, these teens have proven that given the opportunity, they will put their energy, commitment, and talents together to save a family. And the elderly, so often ignored, have come to the forefront in this effort, proving that no one is too old to be effective. And our churches, so often overlooked in this day and age, are coming forward in a new way to make their impact on the larger community. This is a true miracle, a miracle of hearts and hands coming together to help their fellow men. At the Fleming home on Elm St., this is Harvey Sloan."

It was an interesting perspective and one that she had not even considered. As busy as she had been with her own life, her focus had been shifted away from the situation. Perhaps that was a good thing.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

By five o'clock things were starting to come together at the high school. It was three hours to show time and the sets were ready, the sound and lighting cues were all set up, the music was organized, and all the singers, dancers and actors were ready to go. Looking around, Professor Everett was amazed by how professional everything looked. When the programs arrived, he was impressed by the professional printing job. Apparently, Lois knew a local printer who had done the work for free, not only out of the goodness of his heart, but because it was great publicity.

He was proud of his own family's contributions. Nanny and Prudence had arrived with mountains of cookies and brownies and were now working with a group of women from the Columbiettes to set up the refredhment tables. Hal was going to be running the soundboard up in the tech booth. Butch was happy because the minute that he had walked in this morning, Fr. Bob had handed him a paintbrush and told him to start painting sets. He didn't care how old he was as long as he painted neatly. He was going to be backstage helping the stage crew. Prudence of course was performing with the St. Andrew's Bible School, but it was Trelawney who was the star.

In spite of her complaints about the piles of music to learn and, as it turned out, to arrange, she had put together an impressive instrumental group. In addition to Topher and herself, she had a couple of electric guitars, a bass guitar, a few saxophones and a trumpet. The music that the various groups had brought in was energizing and dynamic, and all the band members were such good instrumentalists that after only a couple of run throughs for each piece they had them down. There were of few moments of angst when the kids realized that they really needed a conductor to keep them together. However at four pm the high school music director showed and asked what he could do. Trelawney put him to work at once and before he knew it, he was standing in front of a music stand using a pencil as a baton. He was thrilled at the sound of the group and in time had them synched and playing with enthusiasm and energy.

Even Uncle Alfred had proven himself to be more asset than liability. As the various acts had come in to practice, he had talked to each to find out what they were doing. His intros during rehearsal were half vaudeville half stand up comedy. After the rehearsal, Lois came up to Hal and said,

"That was perfect! He's going to be a smash!"

"Well, don't expect it to be the same tonight. One of the things about Uncle Alfred is that you can never be sure of what is going to come out of his mouth next.

At 5:30, boxes of pizza and bottles of soda arrived from a local pizzeria that had delivery service. Lois had phoned to place an order and when they heard where it was going, they had sent it over for free.

Sitting by himself, he was approached by the band director.

"Are you Professor Everett?" he asked.

"Yes, and you are?"

"Stewart Janson, band director at the high school. I understand that you are little Trelawney's guardian," he replied.

"Yes," said the Professor smiling. "I do claim that dubious title."

"Tell me," asked the band director. "How does a little kid like that manage to pull together the best musicians in high school, arrange all the music, and play the piano with such accomplishment? I've been teaching high school for over twenty years and I have never had a high school student with such talent, let alone an eleven year old."

"Well," answered the Professor. "She's a pretty remarkable kid. I can't take much credit for whatever she knows and doesn't know. She's only been living with us now for about six months. She lost her parents back in England. Her older sister is my housekeeper and since we didn't want to lose her, Trelawney came to live with us."

"She's extraordinary," said Mr. Janson. "I will look forward to working with her when she gets to high school."

After Mr. Janson left him, Phoebe came over to join him. They had not seen each other since breakfast. He wished that he had the nerve to give her a kiss, even a little peck on the cheek, but there were too many people around.

"Hal, how is everything going?" she asked. She seemed anxious.

"Great so far! It seems that you can't look anywhere around here without seeing one of the family, front and center," he replied.

"I'm worried about Trelawney. Why does that boy Topher seem glued to her side?"

Hal grinned. "He is her personal bodyguard. The pastors let Lois know that she needed to be kept away from cameras and the press. Since Topher has four younger sisters at home, he became the choice as big brother, you might say. He's also playing drums tonight in the pit and if anyone tries to get near her he'll run interference."

"You're sure that she'll be out of the spotlight, won't you?" she asked.

"I'll be up in the booth helping them run all the lights. Also, since we're in the high school now, she's much safer than she would have been at the parish hall. The orchestra pit has been designed so that the audience can't see the musicians. Don't worry, she'll be just fine," he said soothingly.

"I'll be glad when this is over," she sighed.

"Me too, it has been one long day," he said. Then, "Hey, we have to leave in a little while to pick up Joni and the kids. Why don't we find a little spot just for ourselves. I've missed you."

She smiled at him, "It's only been a few hours or so."

"My point exactly. I haven't had a hug since I left the house this morning," he said quietly.

"The look in your eye says that you are looking for more than a hug," she replied playfully.

"Well, the look in your eye tells me that you would not be adverse to responding positively to the look in my eye," he answered.

With a wink and a tip of the head, he gestured towards the door. She looked around and then followed him out. They walked out to the car. Seeing that there was no one around, Hal took her in his arms and kissed her lovingly. He felt her relax into him. She was tired. The strain of worrying about Trelawney all day was clearly having its effects. He smoothed her fair hair and as he did whispered,

"Only a few more hours. Before you know it, we will be able take the children, go home, and relax. Once the show gets going, the pace is so fast that you won't have time to worry."

She sighed, "I love you, Hal."

"I love you too, Phoebe. I love you too."

After several more minutes he released her. It was time to pick up the Flemings and come back for the big event.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

As the time for the show neared, the auditorium lobby jumped to life. The doors were set to open at 7:30, but a line had formed by seven. A news crew was out front and Harvey Sloan was back. The local station had decided to tape the whole show and then pick clips to use during the week. Fr. Bob was standing in the lobby with Pastor Paul and Pastor Jason.

"I still can't believe that you got the chairman of the school board to let us use this space. It's perfect!" said Pastor Paul.

"He's also a parishioner," said Fr. Bob, with a mischievous grin. "Every once in a while that good old-fashioned Catholic guilt comes in handy!"

The other two were shaking their heads, when they were approached by another churchman, Pastor Mark from the Wesleyan Methodist Church.

"So if it isn't the holy trinity!" he cheerfully greeted them.

"Pastor Mark! What a great surprise! We haven't seen you in while," answered Fr. Bob.

"Sorry men, but I just got back from vacation. My phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from my parishioners all day. It seems like everybody in town wants to jump on the bandwagon," replied Pastor Mark.

"You bet!" replied Pastor Jason. "Always room for more!"

"Well, what would you say to another youth group?" asked Pastor Mark.

Pastor Paul started to look concerned. "I don't know, Mark. It seems like we've already got a lot of hands. We don't want the kids tripping over each other."

"Well, why don't you listen to what I have to say before you make a decision. One of our youth group leaders, Kevin Smith, lives down the street from the Flemings. He made an appeal to the parish council and this week's Sunday collection plate offerings are going to be donated to the cause," explained Pastor Mark.

"A whole Sunday's . . . Wow!" said Fr. Bob.

"I'm sure that our Sunday collection is nowhere near as big as yours. We have a much smaller congregation. Anyway, so Kevin says that the yard is a mess and the fence is falling apart. It's just not a safe place for the kids to play. In fact, he never even sees them outside," he continued.

Pastor Jason smiled broadly, "Keep talking, Mark. I think that I can see where this is going."

"Okay, so our kids want to put up a new fence. You know, build it and paint it. And then use what's left to buy a slide, swing set, some other outdoor play equipment," he finished.

The other three pastors were silent. Another need had been anticipated and met. If this wasn't the hand of God at work, then there was no hand of God.

Pastor Paul spoke first, "I cannot think of a better contribution to the effort. I know that it would be a great relief to Joni to know that she can send the kids out into the yard to play and know that they were safe. But we are going to have to run this by Jim."

"Run what by Jim?" said Mr. Just Jim, coming up from behind. "Before you run anything by me, I have to run something by you."

As usual, Jim was all worked up about something. Pastor Paul figured that it had to be Eliot. The work site situation was completely under control. He and Jason had been out there this afternoon as the yard had been cleared of debris.

"Well, all the noise out there today has got Eliot all upset. He says that he don't want anyone back on his property. Poor guy, it's all too much for him to handle. And then those kids was just underfoot the whole time. There were some women out there to help, but I don't think that even Nanny would be able to keep them out of trouble. Joni's bringing the older ones tonight. They go to the Bible School with Prudence so they are also in the show. Lois said that she wants them to come up on the stage at the end and thank everyone. But she's a nervous wreck, Joni that is, that Lois is cool as a cucumber. I really think that we gotta just get those folks out of the house or this just isn't gonna work. We gotta find a nice quiet place for Eliot to go. And someone has got to get on the horn with that VA hospital and get him some help. I really think he's gettin' to blow," he said.

The four churchmen looked at each other. Where would they be able to move a family of eight that included two very young children and a sick man? Fr. Bob had already called the VA, being a former army chaplain himself. They were being somewhat less than cooperative.

"Thanks for bringing this to our attention, Jim," Fr. Bob finally said. "I'm going to pray on this. Things have been miraculously and mysteriously working out all week. Something is bound to come up."

As the five men were standing there, Lois came up to them with a box of tee shirts.

"Here you go everyone," she announced handing each man a black tee shirt with white letters splashed across that said "Love Out Loud!"

"How did we afford these?" asked Fr. Bob.

"We didn't," answered Lois. "They showed up back stage about a half hour ago, all sizes from kids to adults, enough for everyone. The note on the box said 'from an anonymous donor'"

"Well," said Pastor Jason. "It seems that whoever 'Anonymous' is, he or she is our biggest donor."

"It's amazing how this stuff just keeps appearing," agreed Lois. "I'm thinking that perhaps this was a viewer from last night's show. The silk screening looks fresh. Anyway, the kids love them. We've got them on the musicians, the stage crew, the tech crew, all of our adult volunteers, we even have them to give to the performers as a thank you. The only one who wouldn't take one is Uncle Alfred."

"Speaking of Uncle Alfred, how is he doing?" asked Fr. Bob.

"He's happy as a clam. And he's got the rest of us happy as well. We have a few dozen kids backstage from the churches and he's been entertaining them with songs, jokes, and magic since six. The older kids are entertaining themselves, playing cards and stuff like that, but the little kids would have been a handful," she said.

"Playing cards?" asked Pastor Paul.

"Playing cards," she said. "Don't worry, we shut down the gambling."

Pastor Jason chuckled, "It's always something."

Pastor Mark was looking around as the volunteers began to put on their shirts. "Wow! Look at all those tee shirts. I can't believe all the volunteers you have out there."

"Yeah," said Fr. Bob, "It sure makes them all stand out."

Nanny and Professor Everett walked in with Joni and the three oldest kids. Joni looked stunned.

"Is all this for us?" she asked.

"You bet'cha," said Jim.

The kids were clearly excited, especially when Lois handed them each a tee shirt. She also gave them to the three adults.

"How wonderful!" said Nanny, "Where did these come from?"

"Honestly," said Lois. "We don't know. They were just delivered back stage about an hour ago."

"Our good friend Anonymous is at it again," said Pastor Paul with a smile. "Nanny, Professor Everett, I don't believe that you know Pastor Mark from the Wesleyan Methodist Church. And of course this is Joni Fleming and Nick, Sue, and Molly."

"Pleased to meet you," said Pastor Mark as he shook hands with each.

"Pastor Mark has been away on vacation. He just came back and found that your neighbor, Kevin Smith, had organized a contribution," said Pastor Jason.

"Kevin?" said Joni. "Oh he's a wonderful young man. He comes over and watches the kids for me sometimes."

"He's a lot better than some old girl babysitter," put in Nick.

"Well the girl babysitters are more fun," replied Sue.

"Okay," said Joni. "This isn't the time or place for that. Pastor Mark, thank you so much."

"You don't even know what it is yet," he said.

"I don't need to. Everyone has been so terrific this past week that I'm sure that whatever it is, it will be great."

"It's a new fence for the yard and play equipment for the kids," said Pastor Paul.

The family was silent. Nanny put her arm around Joni and softly said, "You see, you're not alone in this anymore. Give us another two weeks and we'll turn everything around. You'll have a fresh start."

Seeing how emotional she was getting, Lois invited Nanny and the Flemings to come back stage for a bit before the show.

Professor Everett, who had been at the high school all day commented, "You know, it's really great how these kids have really pulled this together. I am a little worried though, that some of them are involved because they just want to be on stage."

"Fine by me!" said Pastor Jason.

The others looked at him questioningly.

"You see, I don't care what gets them in the door. Once they're in, I can talk to them, maybe get them to come back. If they never come in at all, I don't even get to do that. When we get out there on that worksite next week, you wait and see. Some of those who come will only show up to paint and hammer. Hopefully they'll take more away than just some new carpentry skills," he explained.

"Makes a lot of sense," said Pastor Mark. "They come because their friends come and then maybe they'll come back because they want to."

"I'm not saying that that'll be all the kids," said Pastor Jason, "But I view it as scattered seeds. Hopefully some will fall on fertile ground."

"They're opening the doors to the auditorium. There's the fire marshal. I want to stick by him in case he has any questions. He's here to make sure that we don't exceed capacity," said Fr. Bob.

"I've got to get to the booth," said Professor Everett.

"Yep," said Pastor Jason. "It's time to call in the troops. I'll hit the kids and why don't you two check up on the adults?"

Each went off in his own direction. It was obvious that the crowd would be at or near capacity. It was going to be a very big night.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Watching from the booth, Professor Everett was amazed at the "entertainment" that the Columbiettes and the kids had thrown together in only six days. It was fortunate that it had coincided with the end of many of the summer programs that had involved theatre, music, and dance. The kids were on a bit of a "high" and eager to show off what they had learned. There were even a few adult acts.

Uncle Alfred rose to the occasion, his introductions and jokes charming everyone. There were a few times when the Professor thought that the churchmen would have been cringing from the bawdy or tacky jokes, but there was nothing that anyone could do once he got out there. However, with his charming cockney accent and witty delivery it was hard to get mad at him. And Hal found that it was much easier to enjoy him on a large stage rather than in his living room at home.

From his vantage point in the booth, he could see Phoebe down in front with the Flemings. She and Joni seemed to be clinging to one another for support, each for her own reason. The Professor knew that Phoebe was very anxious about Trelawney and the possibility that she might end up in the press or even worse on TV. Joni was overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and also worried about her husband. On the way over she had told them in the car that the whole thing was too hard on his nerves. One thing that he did find interesting was that Joni and Phoebe seemed to be finding they had much in common. He thought that it would be nice for her to begin to form some friendships with women her age. Since Joni had all those kids, whom she clearly adored, they seemed to be a good match.

As Fr. Bob had feared, the auditorium was packed. It was literally standing room only. The second number "Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord" from the Steven Schwartz musical _Godspell_ would a challenge, since the kids from St. Peters planned to come from the back of the auditorium and start singing as they ran up the aisles.

The community theatre group, which was really the backbone of the show opened the entertainment with "Magic to Do" from _Pippin_. Hal had seen them in rehearsal, but playing to a packed auditorium they just came alive. The singers and dancers were all older kids. The choreography was complex, and beautifully executed. And also the music was amazing. It seemed almost as the musicians had been holding back during rehearsal and now exploding with energy.

From his perch up in the booth, Hal got a kick out of watching Topher go nuts on the drums, his long brown hair flopping around as he jumped around. The guitarists also let loose. Trelawney was standing as she played. They had opened up the grand and she couldn't see over the top. He thought it was a pity that the audience couldn't see them. Following their act, Uncle Alfred came out, performed a few magic tricks of his own and called,

"And I need for all you nice people to clear the aisles and prepare the way for the Lord."

That was the cue for the spotlight to hit Mike, a tall red head, who began to sing the song. A member of the community theatre group, as well as the _de facto_ leader of the St. Peter's youth group, he had remained on stage. A single spotlight hit him as he called to the back of the auditorium.

The title was the entire lyric of the song and before he knew it, the over two thousand people in the auditorium had picked up the chant, "Prepare ye the way of the Lord!" he had never heard anything like it. The kids in the youth group had rushed up to the stage and were spread across clapping and encouraging everyone else along.

When they were done, they took a quick bow and ran off to be replaced by the children from St. Andrews. To keep the momentum up Uncle Alfred popped out to say,

"Time to rise and shine with the St. Andrews Bible School!"

The younger children obviously lacked the polish of the older kids, but they looked very cute in their Love Out Loud tee sheets, singing the old Sunday School chestnut. The audience helped them along by clapping. Prudence of course was front and center, clearly delighted by her role in the spotlight. Standing next to her was little Molly Fleming. Sneaking a peek at Phoebe, Hal was touched to see the tears of pride on her face. Since Joni's three kids were also in the group, the two women hugged when it was over.

When they were finished, Uncle Alfred came over to have a word with them.

"Well, if it isn't me little Prudence! And who is your little friend here?"

"This is Molly," said Prudence. "And her brother Nicky and sister Susie are over here. They're my special friends."

"And what makes them so special?" he asked.

"Because it's their house that we're fixing up!" she said happily.

"Really?" said Uncle Alfred. "Really? Well, blimey, they are special then. So little Molly, how does it feel to be singing up here in front of all these people who are going to fix up your?"

Molly looked around with large eyes. "Very, very, very, very happy!"

"And why is that, love?"

"Because now we get to stay together and I can still live with my Mommy and Daddy," said the little girl seriously.

There was dead silence in the auditorium. Then some of the volunteers stood and began to clap. Slowly, like a rising wave, the entire auditorium stood up. When everyone had settled down, Uncle Alfred said,

"Well, I'm glad we're all having fun here, but it's also good to be reminded of why we're here. Thank you, Molly girl. And now we're about to hear from a few slightly older girls, the Silver Foxes!"

The next group to perform was a dozen singers and dancers clearly between the ages of about 60 to 75 or so. Hal watched amazement as they began to energetically perform a tap dance the to "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." A trio dressed up as the Andrews Sisters in WAC uniforms harmonized beautifully. The accompaniment was Trelawney on piano, Topher on drums, and the young trumpet player from the high school. Her solos had everyone on their feet, once again clapping in time.

As the ladies took their bows and left the stage, Uncle Alfred said,

"Well if that didn't get me heart jumpin', and a few other parts of me body, I don't know what would. Comin' up here we have the Clinton University Players with two songs from the Broadway show _Hair_, "Aquarius" and "Let the Sunshine In."

The Players were one of the best university theatre groups in the state and they did not disappoint. Decked out in psychedelic costumes, colorful wigs and all sorts of beads and bangles, they performed with energy and polish. Hal was happy to see that they didn't overshadow the kids from the churches and summer performance program. He made a mental note to ask Trelawney who had set up the program order. It was a great mix of old and new, young and old, and no acts with stark contrasts in talent.

The lyrics, in light of all that he had seen and heard that day were poignant.

"Harmony and understanding, sympathy and love abound. No more falsehoods or divisions, golden living dream and visions, Magic crystal revelations, And the mind's true liberation. Aquarius! Aquarius!"

After they had finished, Uncle Alfred said, "So kids, what do you have to say about all this peace and war stuff?"

It was a touchy subject, but a young black woman came forward and said, "Sir, the message of this musical may be antiwar, but we're not anti-soldier. We want peace so that none of our boys have to go around the world and become sick and injured or disabled. And we think that it's a crime that our government sends our men overseas and then doesn't take care them when they come home. If they're willing to pay for them to die, then they should be willing to pay for them to live in dignity when they return"

"Hear! Hear!" called out a man from the audience and another standing ovation thundered through the auditorium for the brave young woman who had spoken out, giving voice to a problem that everyone was ignoring.

"That's right," Uncle Alfred, "Hear! Hear! And speaking a here, here, how about we go over there with Old Barber Shop Quartet.

Once again, a foursome of senior citizens got up the wow the group with their energetic rendition of the old George M. Cohen favorite. The old coots were clearly having a blast. Since they sang a capella it was an opportunity for the band to take a break. Hal was struck by the fact that the two paeans to soldiers had bookended the anti-war songs.

In a switch of pace, the community Baptist Church Gospel Choir gave a soulful performance of "Elijah Rock," a standard gospel tune made famous by Mahalia Jackson back in the 60's. In their electric blue choir robes and yellow sashes they made a tremendous visual impact, but it was their stamping and clapping choreography that brought everyone to their feet.

Uncle Alfred came out and said, "Well, now it's time for our intermission! We invite all of you to go out in the lobby and purchase our wonderful snacks, baked by our wonderful ladies in the Columbiettes and their friends in the other churches. And don't forget. There was no admission charge for comin' to our little entertainment, but if you're having fun, our baskets are out for your generous donations."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Hal killed the stage lights and brought up the house lights. It was at that point that he realized that his tee shirt was completely saturated. He was also starving. He went out to the lobby to see Phoebe in the middle of the action at the food tables. He shook his head. Seeing Pastor Paul, he flagged him down and said quietly,

"Can you figure out a way of getting Nanny out of there? She's been very tense all day worrying about Trelawney. I don't think that she's going to relax until we get her home tonight. She's doing it again."

"Doing what again?" asked Pastor Paul.

"Whenever the pressure starts to get to her she throws herself into some project or another to avoid her worries. We'll pay for it tonight when she can't sleep from the nightmares," explained Hal.

"I'll see what I can do. Maybe I can get her to go back and keep Joni and the kids company," said Pastor Paul.

"Thanks, I would really appreciate that," said Hal.

But before he could leave, Pastor Jason came up.

"Paul, you remember that little problem that Jim brought to us before the show? Well, Bob's been doing more than just praying on it. He thinks that he has a solution. But don't tell anyone until we know for sure," he said.

As Pastor Paul walked over to get Nanny away from the refreshments table, he turned and said,

"Professor, I need to have word with you."

Hal was immediately alert.

"Janson, the band director from the high school was talking to Harvey Sloan before the show, and gave him Trelawney's name. Although he didn't know her real name, so he called "Trelawney Everett." Nobody thought to clue him in this afternoon about keeping her away from the TV cameras."

The Professor groaned, "I should have thought of that when he came up to me at dinner, and was going on and on about how talented she is. If Phoebe finds out, she'll be a basket case."

Like Pastor Paul yesterday, Pastor Jason was startled by the Professor's use of Nanny's first name. Looking at him now, he could see that Nanny wasn't the only potential basket case. But he had an idea.

"I'm not going to tell you not to worry, because I know you will. Sloan can't get near the pit until after the show. I'll talk to Topher and tell him to make sure that the guys hustle her out before Sloan and his camera get near her. And I'm going to enlist Uncle Alfred," he said.

"Why him?"

"Can you think of a better distraction? Except for maybe Jim," said the Pastor. "And don't tell Nanny. If we can avoid the problem completely, there's no use in worrying her."

The lights flashed in the lobby.

"That's my cue," said Hal. "I'll see you after the show."

The two men went back into the auditorium to get things ready for the second act.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

_Can they get through the second act and get away from the reporter?_


	5. Chapter 5: Act II

**Chapter 5: Love Out Loud Act II**

By the time Hal got the house lights down, almost everyone was in their seats. Uncle Alfred came out and announced,

"With no further ado, we shall begin the second act of our entertainment with the children's choir from Trinity Church singing "This is the Day."

The children came out looking relatively angelic in their white choir robes. The Professor chuckled as he saw flashbulbs going off all over the auditorium.

"Those parents are going to be very disappointed when they get those pictures back," he commented.

The kid sitting next to him at the board asked puzzled, " Why?"

"The range of those flashbulbs is probably ten feet at the most. They'll be lucky if they get a decent picture of the person sitting in front them," he explained.

The kids however sounded great and made a wonderful segway into the next act, a group of the younger kids from Trelawney's theatre program singing, "Happiness is" from the new Broadway hit _You're a Good Man Charlie Brown_. The Professor was amused to notice that Francine had been cast as Lucy. Well, that's certainly casting to type, he thought. His amusement turned to respect however, when the kids began to recite the dialogue preceding the song. Francine had nailed the part, not just because of the obvious similarities with the character, but because she was a really good actress.

When the group started singing, it became quite clear that she also had a very good voice. Like the other acts that he had seen in rehearsal, this one came alive in front of the huge audience. He was glad to see that his money had not been wasted when he had put Trelawney in the group. She had been disappointed when she had realized that she would not be able to perform in the act, even though she didn't have a role but was only a part of the ensemble. The song had to have the piano accompaniment. However, looking at her now happily playing in the pit, he realized that even though she didn't get to do what she had wanted to do, she was being a very good sport.

Following the act, Uncle Alfred made a few comments about happiness and introduced the children's choir from St. Peters. It was a shame that they had to follow the Charlie Brown act, which was so polished. This act was definitely the weak link in the show. They hadn't even had sheet music for their song "God is Our Father" which to the Professor sounded more like a Christian campfire song than anything else. Trelawney had grumbled about having to listen to them sing it a few times before she could make up an accompaniment. For what it was, the kids performed their best. What they lacked in talent, they made up for in enthusiasm. And of course there were lots of proud parents and grandparents in the audience to cheer them on.

After the act, Uncle Alfred came out to talk with the kids. Walking up to one little boy he said, "So young man, am I your brother?"

The kid stood there thinking for a longer time than he should have needed for such a simple question. Finally he said bluntly, "No!"

"Why you cut me to the quick. If I'm not your brother then who am I?"

"You're my uncle," said the boy stoutly.

"He is not your uncle," interrupted a little girl.

"Is too!" answered the boy. "Prudence said that he was everyone's Uncle Alfred."

The girl rolled her eyes and said, "That's just a figure of speech. He's not really your uncle, right Uncle Alfred?"

By now the audience was in hysterics.

"Well young lady," said Uncle Alfred, "Sometimes these relationships is complicated. Now how would you know that for certain I not not his Uncle Alfred?"

"Because he's my brother and I know for sure that you are not MY Uncle Alfred," she replied in a very definitive tone.

Thinking quickly on his feet, Uncle Alfred looked out to the audience and said, "Cor blimey. Is this little one's Mum or Dad out there?"

"That would be us!" called a young man and his wife standing up.

"My condolences, I mean, I wish you good luck, sir," said Uncle Alfred sincerely. "This'un 'll give you quite a run for your money."

As the audience laughed, he shooed the choir off the stage and called back Mike from St. Peters and the community theatre. Before the kids were all off, one little boy turned and around and said,

"You all better clap hard for my brother because he wants to go to Juilliard next year!"

As the young man walked out for his solo, his face was almost as red as his hair. Uncle Alfred said,

"Julie? Julie who? Who is this Julie girl what's got a yard named after her?"

Mike gave a nervous laugh, "No, sir. Juilliard is the name of a very famous performing arts school in New York City."

"Performing what school?" asked Uncle Alfred in mock outrage. "In my day we didn't have to go to no school to learn to perform!"

"The how did you learn, sir?" inquired the young man respectfully.

"Well in my case it just come natural-like, you know? Other fellows without so much talent? Well, they had to learn on the streets. You know you can learn just about anything you want to on the streets, if you're gettin' my drift!" he said with a wink and a naughty smile.

Catching someone's eye off to the side, he quickly said, "Well here's me friend Mike singing "Corner of the Sky" from _Pippin_!"

The lights dropped with the exception of the spotlight and the music swelled. The handsome redhead began to sing:

"Everything has its season, everything has its time, show me a reason and I'll show you a rhyme. Cats fit on a windowsill, children fit in the snow. Why do I feel like I don't fit, anywhere I go? Rivers will can where they can ramble, eagles will go where they can fly. I've got to be where my spirit can run free. Got to find my corner, of the sky!"

The Professor watched as the young man put his heart and soul in to the song. His talent was self-evident. He had never heard the song before, but now he realized that he had heard Trelawney humming the tune around the house. It made sense that the song would speak to her, but it also spoke to him. How often had he thought that perhaps a little corner of the sky was where he needed to be with Phoebe. Looking down he watched her. Her eyes were rapt on the young singer and he knew that she was feeling it too.

Suddenly he realized that the song was over and it was time to move on to the Broadway show tunes that had been chosen by the young people's theatre program. They had chosen three songs from two old time musicals: Frank Loesser's _Guys and Dolls_ and Cole Porter's _Anything Goes_. The decision had been made to put them at the end of the show, right before the finale "Day by Day" from _Godspell_. The older pieces would certainly appeal to the older audience members, with the larger wallets and could perhaps encourage them to make larger donations (so Lois thought). Someone had quite clearly purposely chosen numbers with a "church" connection - if taken out of context.

"Sit Down, You're Rockin the Boat" was of course the big number from Guys and Dolls when Sky Masterson saves the Save a Soul mission by winning the "souls" of the gamblers in a dice game. "Blow, Gabriel, Blow" and "Heaven Hop" were two great numbers, even if in the show they were performed Reno Sweeney and her somewhat less than angelic "Angels" who were posing on a trans-Atlantic liner as missionaries. He had been amused by the song choices especially when he heard that they had been made by Trelawney. When he asked her about it, she had given him first a mischievous grin and then a look of wide-eyed innocence when he wagged his finger at him. Gamblers and prostitutes on stage for a church entertainment, what would she think of next?

However, all three were rousing numbers and very well performed. "Heaven Hop" was a dancers' number, with a single soloist and a chorus of tap dancers, including Francine. He had to admit that the annoying little girl next door really had talent. He made a mental note to be more tolerant of her mother's bragging, although only in this area.

"Sit down! You're Rockin' the Boat" was an interesting interpretation with the electric guitars and bass filling in for the orchestra. The two guys playing Nathan Detroit and Nicely Nicely were obviously aping Frank Sinatra and Stubby Kaye from the movie, much to the delight of the older audience. But even the younger kids enjoyed the rousing rendition.

However, it was "Blow, Gabriel, Blow" that was the show-stopper. The whole community theatre group filled the stage. Whoever had directed the young singer had instructed her well, in what could only have been Ethel Merman's interpretation. And the kid had the vocal power to back it up. When the audience stood on their feet and called for an encore, he saw Trelawney in the pit gesturing a one and a C with her hand and there was a repeat of the chorus.

When community theatre kids had cleared the stage, he killed the lights and brought up two spots so that the kids from St. Peters could come forth. Dressed in blue jeans and their Love Out Loud tee shirts, the mood settled down, Trelawney began to play a simple piano accompaniment, and a single female soloist came forward to sing the simple lyric: "Day by day, day by day, oh dear Lord, three things I pray: to see Thee more clearly, love Thee more dearly, follow Thee more nearly, day by day."

The other singers moved forward and the group began singing the lines slowly, increasing in tempo and volume as more instruments joined in until the rock band had built up to a fast paced full out rock song complete with riffs by the guitars and an "improv" by the saxes. The audience was on its feet again clapping along with some people picking up the lyric. The slow prayerful melody had morphed into an anthem and from the back the rest of the show's cast came out to sing. When the music finally died. Uncle Alfred came out and said,

"Well, I guess you lot all expect me to follow that! I think that I'll quit while I'm ahead."

If only, thought the Professor.

"Before you all leave, I want to call up a few people to thank. First off we have Lois Lenihan and Fr. Bob from St. Peter's Catholic Church, who pulled this whole thing together. And then over here we have Pastor Jason from the Trinity Presbyterian Church and Pastor Paul from St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, who will be handled the worksite out there for the next two weeks. And finally we got Jim and Aunt Lottie and Rosemary Darmstadt and Mathilda Kaufman who have pretty much been running this whole operation out of the rec room at the Montclaire nursing home."

Looking around, he said, "Hey, where's my little peach, Aunt Lottie?"

"She's in the back, managing those finance committee people from the churches," said Jim. "Like she's been managing me all week."

Fr. Bob quickly came forward, "I would also like to thank Pastor Mark from the Wesleyan Methodist Church, who just told us tonight that their youth group will be building a fence and providing play equipment for the yard."

Uncle Alfred had to needle them a little, "Well, it's only been a few hundred years since the old Reformation. I'm glad that you boys have finally learned how to play nice together."

Lois jumped in and said, "Well, we've been calling these three the Holy Trinity."

"Better yet, the unholy trinity" quipped Uncle Alfred and before anyone could stop him, "And by my count we got us the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse now."

The audience by this point was reeling in gales of laughter. Lois gave Uncle Alfred a stern look,

"I prefer to think of them as the Four Evangelists."

But before he could retort, Jim had to have the last word, "Well, I'm here representing the heathens. You don't want to leave us out, do you?"

"Well, Mr. Just Jim" said Uncle Alfred. "I do believe that the idea was to bring you in, and it's looks to me like they did."

Before Jim could reply, Lois came forward to the rescue, "Well, there a few people here that we want to bring in: Joni Fleming and her children Nick, Sue, and Molly."

Joni and the kids walked out and waved to the applause of the audience.

Uncle Alfred said, "So, Mrs. Fleming, do you have anything to say?"

She faltered and then, with tears in her eyes said, "Thank you."

"Well them's two of the biggest words in the whole English language," he said. "And I can only speak for me self, but I want to say thank you for bringing all these great people together. I did me share of traveling in this world, and I have say. I rarely been in such a place full a' love and family spirit. Thanks to all you great folks and me friend Professor Everett who wished me here yesterday!"

Fr. Bob nodded to the orchestra pit before he could anything else that might be inappropriate, and Trelawney started another rousing rendition of "Blow, Gabriel, Blow!"

"I want to join your happy band, and play all day in the promised-land. So blow! Gabriel! Blow!"

Her little idea for an entertainment, that had nearly been shot down the week before at the church meeting had been a triumph. Hal thought that it was a shame that she and the band couldn't get the recognition that they deserved because of the need to keep her out of the limelight. But none of them seemed to mind.

The bass guitarist had said during rehearsal, "I didn't come here for recognition, I came to serve. Our Lord told us to do for others without seeking reward or recognition."

He brought the house lights up even as the music was still playing, and from the booth he could see Harvey Sloan heading for the orchestra pit with his cameraman.

Pastor Jason saw him too and hustled Uncle Alfred over to intercept him before he could reach the pit. He saw him tap Topher on the shoulder and gesture towards the reporter. The music abruptly stopped and the guys in the pit surrounded Trelawney and pushed her through the crowd to towards the stage in the opposite direction, but the area was so jammed with people that they couldn't get out. Thankfully Phoebe was standing with Joni Fleming and had her back turned, but if she should turn forward she would see Sloan.

However, Pastor Jason and Uncle Alfred got to him first. Hal chuckled as he saw Uncle Alfred talking away as Harvey Sloan tried in vain to get past him. Whatever, Janson had told him about Trelawney, he was clearly eager to follow up on the story. Fortunately, Uncle Alfred's interference gave Topher and the boys enough time to get Trelawney out. Hal called over his son,

"Hal, run down and tell Nanny that Trelawney is out of the auditorium."

Hal gave him a questioning look, but seeing the look on his father's face, ran out. By now Nanny had seen Sloan with Uncle Alfred and the look on her face told him that she was scared to death. But Hal had rushed through the crowd down from the booth. The Professor could see that he had reached Phoebe with his message. Mrs. Darmstadt and Mrs. Kaufman were nearby and seeing her distress got her out the other side.

By the time he reached her, Trelawney was already in her arms back stage and actually comforting her.

"It's all right, Phoebe, Topher took care of me. He was my guardian angel tonight," she said.

Topher, who was standing beside them, was clearly embarrassed but he said, "Don't worry Nanny, we'll get you out of here before that guy can get anyway near you."

She looked at him gratefully and seeing Hal, said, "Professor, I really would like to go. We've all had a long day and we need to get these kids in bed."

"I'll go find Butch and Prudence," offered young Hall. "And Uncle Alfred."

The Professor grimaced, "Do you have to?"

"Professor!" cried Nanny and Trelawney together.

"Okay," relented the Professor. "But see if you can't figure out a way to lose that ukelele. Meet us at the car? I'm parked out in the far lot."

Hal took off.

"Siberia?" asked Topher with a grin.

"Is that what you call it?" he asked.

"Yup! My van is out back right behind the auditorium where I unloaded the drum kit this morning," he said. "Why don't I give you a ride out there?"

"What about the kids?" asked Nanny.

"They're healthy, they can walk. And they're probably so pumped up that expending a little of that energy will do them, not to mention us, good." said Hal.

"But about Uncle Alfred?" she asked.

"Maybe he'll get lost."

Trelawney rolled her eyes and said, "I'm tired. Can we leave now?"

When Topher dropped them off, to his embarrassment, Trelawney threw her arms around his neck and said, "Thank you for everything Topher, you are my gallant knight."

"Well, uh, you're welcome, I guess," he answered uncomfortably.

Turning to Hal, she said, "Professor, you have been displaced."

The Professor turned to Topher and said in a low voice, "Play along, she's a little girl who's read too many fairy stories."

Topher nodded, now understanding. "I should introduce her to my sister Sarah. They'd have a blast together."

Just as he was driving off, the kids arrived with Uncle Alfred. As the Professor had predicted, by the time they reached the car they were dragging. Uncle Alfred still had his ukelele, but was looking as if he would need more than a few hours sleep before he would even try playing it again.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

When everyone was in bed, Phoebe and Hal sat in the kitchen together drinking a cup of tea. Seeing that she was still tense, Hal stood up behind her and began to massage her neck and shoulders. She leaned back and said, "Oh, that's lovely. Thank you for everything tonight."

"You really don't have me to thank. It was Topher and Pastor Jason and, I hate to admit it, Uncle Alfred, who really kept her safe," he said.

He could see the tears beginning to well up.

"Phoebe, you're not going to be able to keep her wrapped up in cotton wool from now on," said Hal. "We need to get you past this. If you continue to be afraid every time she's out of your sight, then she'll start to be afraid."

She put her head down on the table and said in a muffled voice, "I know."

"You're overtired. It's been a long day. Let's get you up to bed," he said gently.

She was silent and then looked up at him with pleading in her eyes.

"No, Phoebe," he said softly. "You know as well as I do that that cannot happen. What do you think would happen if one of the girls woke up and found you missing? She'd come looking for you and then there would be hell to pay."

She looked back at him hopelessly. He kissed her head and said, "Come with me."

Taking her into the living room, he settled her on the sofa, and went to the liquor cabinet. He looked back at her and she sighed, "Whiskey."

As before, he poured her a large tumbler and then one of scotch for himself. Handing hers to her he said,

"This is obviously not a permanent solution, but for now it will have to do."

She reluctantly took a sip.

"It won't be so bad if you don't gulp it down. Sip it and we can sit up for a while and talk," he said but adding in a suggestive tone, "Or something else."

"Hmmm, something else sounds nice," she said, trying to play along.

He put his arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder. As she continued to sip, he could feel her relaxing. It really wasn't that late. He knew that he would be able to sit up with her until she was ready for him to put her to bed and not lose much sleep himself. His biggest concern was that she would wake up from a nightmare calling for him. Trelawney might understand but the other kids would not.

When he finished his drink he began to stroke her hair. Seeing her glass was empty, he took it from her hand and set it on the table. Turning her face toward him he initiated a long, deep kiss. Warmed by the whiskey she responded, not with passion but with longing. Her arms reached around him to hold him more tightly. He in turned held her more closely. As they searched each other's mouths, Hal could perceive that sense of recognition that he had felt before, that sense of knowing this woman inside and out, from long ago. As she kneaded the knots in his back, he allowed her to pull him down on her.

He could feel himself responding to the feeling of her body beneath his. Without thinking, he pressed himself into her and felt her arch in response. They knew each other. Afraid to look in her eyes, afraid that the desire that her body felt would be revealed in their blue depths, he began to kiss her more deeply. He knew that he would be able to resist the impulses of his body, but not the longing in her eyes. He realized now that the liquor had not really been such a good idea after all. In addition to calming both their nerves, it had removed their inhibitions.

He knew that if he didn't let her go, that chances were good that they would fall asleep right there, or worse. But the was no Emmeline in the house to wake them before the kids got up. With great reluctance, he disengaged himself and stood up. Reconciled to his decision, she took the hand he offered and allowed him to walk her upstairs. As they stood before Prudence's door, he felt like a teenager bringing home his date, standing outside the front door, hoping that the girl's father wouldn't interrupt.

She must have read his thoughts because he caught a glimmer of a smile and even a hint of amusement in her eyes.

"I am looking forward to the day," she said seductively. "When we can declare our love out loud."

His response was to kiss her long and deep, searching out every corner of her mouth as she pressed her body into his. Then, without warning, she detached herself. After she had slipped into the room, he stood outside for a long time. He hoped that that day would come soon.

**The End**

_Next up is the story "Renovation." In it, the characters will be renovating more than just a house._


End file.
